BUSINESS AIR NEWSE U R O P E A N

ISSUE 191 APRIL 2009

Francisco Lucas, md, (right) and Rafael Torres, are working to develop CoyotAir’s successful Spanish business template in Peru. See the full story in our review of charteroperations in Spain starting on page 10.

For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.

Exeter-based Capital Air Charterreports that it has successfully begunchartering the first commerciallyregistered Blackhawk B200 in Europefrom its UK headquarters.

Malcolm Humphries, md andchief pilot, says: “This nine-seaterexecutive aircraft, a heavily modifiedversion of the popular Super King AirB200 twin turboprop, is faster, morefuel efficient, has a longer range andshorter take-off and landing capacitythan ever before.”

He adds: “The B200 has alwaysbeen able to carry more people atlower cost on typical Europeanroutes than comparative executivejets. However, because of itsrelatively low cruising speeds, somepundits predicted it would lose outdue to the advent of new VLJs andother cost-effective twin jetspromising to carry three to fivepassengers around Europe at highspeed and low cost.”

But Humphries points out that

the new Blackhawk aircraft, withuprated Pratt & Whitney PT6A-61engines, BLR winglets, Raisbeckstreamlining modifications andFrakes exhausts, climbs more quickly to cruising altitude, and oncethere cruises at speeds of well over300 knots.

“This means that, as well asproviding more seats, space, comfortand baggage carrying capacity thancomparative aircraft, European flight

times now compete directly withVLJs and other more traditionalexecutive jets such as, for example,the Cessna Citation series,” he says.

“The new aircraft is already wellproven in the US and is incrediblypopular with owners and charteroperators there; however Capital’saircraft is the first on the Europeancommercial register.”

Humphries adds: “The King Airhas always been a great machine, but the Blackhawk makes the perfect European executivetransport. Our executive and airambulance clients have beendelighted with this latest addition tothe fleet and are now enjoyingsignificantly reduced journey timesand extended practical range. TheBlackhawk B200 allows Capital, forthe first time, to fly to the limits of itsAOC region, and this includeslocations in Egypt, Russia – includingSt Petersburg – and North Africa.”

Blackhawk debut brings Capitalgains as businesses cut spending

For details of how to enter, see page 3.

Capital’s Blackhawk B200: competingwith VLJs on Europe flight times.

Ireland’s Private Sky, which hasadded a Hawker 800XP based atBelfast’s Aldergrove airport and aHawker 900XP to its managed fleet,believes its traditionally competitivepricing is standing it in good stead.

The company, formerly AirlinkAirways, anticipates its managementfleet will expand despite theeconomic downturn. “However,”Andrew Shubotham points out, “this will depend on our clients’decisions.”

Airlink Airways, he says, waslaunched around 15 years ago. “Wefelt that we needed a name that more accurately reflects the nature of our service delivery. The PrivateSky name is more appropriate for a complete aircraft managementcompany that enables owners tooffset their own costs usingchartering revenue and provides

Private Skypredicts further

growth formanaged fleet

Business aviation in the Middle Eastcould be much less affected byeconomic downturn than Europe andthe US – so believe the majority ofdelegates at the Aviation OutlookMiddle East Conference in Abu Dhabi in March.

Royal Jet president and ceo ShaneO’Hare agreed with the consensusthat the industry has enjoyedexceptional growth in past years. Andwhile the current economic climatewill inevitably restrict similar growthlevels this year, all agreed that thesigns are there for a healthy 2009.

“To a degree the Middle Easternmarket has been isolated from theoverall worldwide downturn, due inpart to the high level of liquidity in theregion and a strong GDP which isforecast to remain at around sevenper cent,” he says. “As a company ourstrategy of product and marketsegmentation protects us from theworst of the economic turbulence.”

O’Hare also highlights how long-term opportunities can arise out ofdifficult economic conditions. “Partof our growth strategy to the year 2020is to increase our fleet in the supermid range by aircraft management asa major part of our business and weare on track to more than double ourfleet by the year 2012,” he says.

“Prices of aircraft are falling andcorporate jet brokers tell us that a yearago there would be 30 buyers lookingfor one aircraft. Today there are 30aircraft looking for one buyer, pushingprices down by 30-40 per cent. We arelooking to add another BBJ and anaircraft which was $75 million lastyear is expected to break the $50million price range by year end.”

Aircraft management is anotherarea that is presenting Royal Jet withgrowth opportunities. “Optimising anaircraft’s usage for private orcorporate owners in the difficulteconomic climate provides a win-winsituation for private jet operators andfor aircraft owners,” says O’Hare.

Middle East set to emergequickly from

downturn

For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.For details of how to enter, see page 3.

Sancak Air invests in

aircraft to stay ahead page 2

Atlantsflug chooses Navajo

for glacier tours page 2

DC Aviation works with airline

to develop VIP charter page 3

Hawkers undertake cloud

seeding in Saudi Arabia page 4

SPECIAL FOCUSESSpanish charter

review page 10

Continued on page 4 Continued on page 2

DestinationSouth AmericaDestinationSouth America

ME & MY AIRCRAFTSingle engineturboprops page 5

Iceland’s Atlantsflug has brought atwin engine Piper Navajo intooperation, increasing the payload ofits sightseeing flights out of its private airfield at Skaftafell NationalPark in Iceland.

Jon G Sigurdsson, projectmanager, says: “We acquired the newaircraft after selling our Cessna singleengine aircraft last autumn. Theaircraft we now have to serve ourcustomers has an eight seat, sevenpassenger configuration. This changewill enable the company to betterserve our charter clients, includingtour operators, because we canaccommodate larger groups,previously not possible because ofthe limited capacity of our previousaircraft. This change has beenwelcomed by our customers and we

look forward to increased business.”Atlantsflug main base is a

private airport in south east Icelandlocated near Europe’s largest glacier,the Vatnajökull at Skaftafell National Park.

Sigurdsson says: “We offer flightsto various locations over Vatnajökullglacier and into the highlands ofIceland, to locations includingLandmannalaugar, Langisjór, Lakiand Lakagigar. We also provideservices to professional photo-graphers and film makers and offerbespoke as well as standard tours.”

He says thousands of clients overthe years have booked charter,sightseeing, aerial photography, air ambulance and air cargo transport services.

Atlantsflug maintenance has

received EASA Part 145 approval. “Atthe same time we have increased ourhangar space to better accommodatethis change and to expand ourservices,” Sigurdsson adds.

The Piper Navajo, he says, waschosen because of its robust design,good runway performance and largepassenger windows. “It is an aircraftthat can withstand the demandingoperational environment.”

The Piper PA31, both the Chieftainand the Navajo, have proven theirworth in commercial service inIceland for many years, saysSigurdsson. “Clients appreciate thepersonal service we give as they areshown the magnificent andbreathtaking scenery. We are a smallfamily operation that takes greatpride in what we do,” he adds.

The Atlantsflug Piper Navajo.

Sancak Air is expanding its fleet and facilities.

Atlantsflug turns to the proven Piper Navajo to improve glacier tour services

2 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Private Sky predicts further growthfor managed fleet

Continued from front page

aircraft management solutionsranging from purchasing, registrationand flight management to crewprovisioning, maintenance overviewand chartering services.”

The Hawker 800 is based inAldergrove to be near the aircraftowner’s Belfast headquarters. “Theowner knows there are realadvantages in using private charter to win and retain business in tougheconomic times,” says Shubotham.“Our fleet size has been expandingsince the company was launched.”

The fleet now consists of a Hawker800XP, two 850XPs, a 900XP, twoLearjet 60s and a Citation XLS all ofwhich are chartered throughoutEurope and Russia. Client demand is a mix of business and leisure.

“As well as the Hawker 800 we haverecently acquired a new Hawker900XP,” Shubotham says. “Our aircraftare chosen for their size, robustness,styling and cost-effective main-tenance. We order both new and pre-owned and our fleet is made up of twobrand new aircraft and others that areno more than three years old.

“We see this year being tough but,once the financial world settles down,we expect to be at the forefront due toour competitive pricing and highlevels of quality.

“The economic downturn isunfortunate but it might have thepositive effect of rooting out thosecompanies that overcharged clients to cover high costs that should nothave been incurred or could havebeen avoided.”

Sancak Air, which claims to have thelargest helicopter fleet in Turkey, willrecruit more pilots as it brings threefurther helicopters into operationthis year and through next year.

The air taxi operator, which hasupgraded its FBO at AtaturkHavalimani to provide facilities for itsown and client aircraft, may alsoacquire a Bell 412. “The largerhelicopter would complement bothour existing fleet and the newhelicopters,” says sales managerYavuz Murat Yüzgen. “Thehelicopters on order for 2009 are aJetRanger BIII, a Bell 407 and a Bell429 in 2010.”

Sancak Air currently operates avariety of Bell helicopters including

the 206 BIII, 206 L3, the 206 L4 and the430. “Both our existing helicoptersand our ordered helicopters willcontinue to satisfy establisheddemand in the marketplace,” saysYüzgen. “Our customer base is varied.As well as top business executives wealso serve tourists and sightseers andwe transport medical patients andprovide EMS services.”

The company operates a Bellhelicopter JAR-145 maintenancecentre and its choice of fleet and new aircraft reflects this capability.Yüzgen explains: “Our vision for thefuture is to maintain our role as amarket leader providing a helicopterflight academy as well as themaintenance centre and air taxi

service, with a strong group culturefor service and competence as wework to international standards.”

All Sancak pilots, he adds, areinstructor pilots that have 5,000 to12,000 hours flight experience.

Yüzgen says the economic crisismeans most operators are choosingnot to invest in new aircraft but tokeep going with their existing fleets.

“Sancak Air is moving ahead ofthese static companies,” Yüzgen says. “Despite the night flightprohibitions in Turkey we expecteach of our helicopters to fly at least40 hours in a month. We prefer toorder brand new helicopters.”

The company, established in 1978,has expanded its activities year-on-

year. Its flight academy provides pilottraining and refresher courses as wellas medical adaptation courses andtraining on the Bell 206 BIII, 206 L3,L4 and 430. As well as the AtaturkFBO, Sancak Air has facilities atIstanbul Sefakoy and in Ayvalik.

“Aviation has recently developedrapidly in our country compared withthe last 15 years,” says Yüzgen. “Nowthere are almost 70 aviationcompanies. But Sancak Air has beenoperating in every sector for 30 yearsand provides 24-hour services.Clients need to make the most of theirtime and that, along with ourexperience of meeting their needs,means we can face the future with confidence.”

Sancak Air invests in new aircraft and FBO facilities to stay ahead of competitors

Six years ago German operator AirGOchose the comparatively unknownPiaggio P180 Avanti for its operations.At the time, the charter company feltthere was no other aircraft in its pricerange to match it in terms ofefficiency and comfort.

General manager Daniela Flierlenthuses: “We have found a nichewith the Avanti – the decision wemade was absolutely right.” To provethis point, AirGO brings its fifthAvanti into operation this year,becoming the largest P180 operatorin Europe.

AirGO finds that an aircraft likethis is particularly in demand indifficult economic times. “When westarted to operate the Avanti, wethought that the customers we wouldwin would be those usually usingslow turboprops and small jets,” saysThorge Heuer, AirGO operationsmanager. “Today, we have manycustomers who also like to fly on largejets.” The Avanti makes more senseon most flight routes within Europe,Heuer believes. “With the speed of asmall jet, the flight time is so shortthat the money customers canpotentially save helps a decision infavour of the Avanti.”

The aircraft are based at keylocations in central Europe and,depending on the season or customerrequest, they can also be based atother locations.

This year, AirGO has also started tooffer pure management services toprivate owners. “We realised that wehave such a wide range of experiencewith this plane, which is stillconsidered to be exotic, that moreand more Avanti customers turn tous,” explains Flierl.

Avanti is stillthe right

choice forAirGO

AirGO will bring its fifth Piaggio Avantiinto service this year.

UK executive helicopter manage-ment and charter company PremiAirexperienced a busy flying scheduletransporting race-goers toGloucestershire to enjoy theCheltenham Festival.

PremiAir utilised the majority of its12-strong executive charter fleet toensure that its clients weretransported in style to soak up theelectric racecourse atmosphere. Intotal PremiAir operated over 20 flightsduring the four-day festival.

Passengers flew in from across theUK, including London Heliport,Farnborough airport and hotelsincluding von Essen’s LowerSlaughter House and WashbourneCourt in the Cotswolds, reports DavidLangton, PremiAir sales andcustomer service manager.

Cheltenhamrace-goers keepPremiAir busy

APRIL 2009 3EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Stanley Bugeja (centre) md of DC Aviation Ltd (Malta) is pictured with Dr Edward Fenech Adami, the Maltese president (left), andMichael Fenech Adami, mayor of the Birkirkara local council. DC Aviation is planting a tree in Birkirkara for each handling businesstransaction in Malta. The scheme is called ‘Towards Greener Aviation’.

BUSINESS AIR NEWSE U R O P E A N

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These are undoubtedly verydifficult times for business aviationwith activity levels across Europedown by over 20% compared with ayear ago, and in some countries it isa lot worse than this. Such adramatic reduction is inevitablyleading to redundancies andaircraft disposals, and hence to arapid fall in asset values and highlevels of ‘for sale’ inventory. Butnone of this changes the primaryreason for business aviation.Indeed, the equally significant fallin airline traffic and consequentflight cancellations means that it isbecoming ever more difficult tocomplete timely business deals atdestinations away from the mainline hubs, with many cities servedless frequently than before, andsome no longer served at all.

Numerous studies in Europehave shown that business aviationis primarily a business tool ofCorporations and Governments,which represent some 80% of users.But somehow we have allowed theperception that we are all high networth individuals “swanning aboutto holiday destinations anddrinking champagne in the heightof luxury few of us can even dreamabout”. Perhaps it is our fault thatnumerous advertisements forbusiness jets show pictures ofluxurious interiors, filledchampagne flutes and fancycuisine. Yet this is not, and neverhas been, the bulk of the market.Indeed, challenge any one of uswho routinely flies in smallerbusiness aircraft with our businesscolleagues to look forward to theluxury of it all, when in reality weare fighting for foot room andsipping coffee.

What we do appreciate is theeasy access at the local airport, theelimination of wasted time and thebenefit of direct routes and shortsectors, allowing more time to bedevoted to actually gettingbusiness done. Not only that, wecan do business on board with ourcolleagues and prepare for

meetings. Furthermore, we are lesstired on arrival having not had tobattle traffic. When we fly businessaircraft, we arrive at our meetingfully “booted and spurred” to dothe deal.

Nor do we need to feel guiltyabout our impact on theenvironment. Despite being 8% ofIFR traffic in Europe, because wehave a very young fleet and fly totask and not to artificial schedules,we contribute less than 1% ofaviation emissions (0.04% of all EUemissions). Moreover, we are flyingto add value to our businesses andthe European economy, the keytenet of sustainability, rather thetonne-kilometre measure currentlyso popular, but which fails to takeaccount of gross value added.

In short, the time has come tostand up and be counted, and thatis why we launched “Talking Pointsfor Users and Owners”; distributeda new brochure, “Piloting theEuropean Economy”, to all MEPsand EC Officials; and have becomeinvolved both in online networkingsites and in a press campaignsetting out the true facts aboutBusAv, rather than themisconceptions sadly re-enforcedby the insensitive use of businessjets by the US carmakers lastautumn. We’re raising our voice onbehalf of the entire sector, so pleasetake a look at www.ebaa.org andtake from it what you wish todefend your business.

The need for business aviationremains as strong as ever. That iswhy we have been the fastestgrowing segment in Europe in thelast decade after low cost carriers.From the flat lows of the 1990s,business aviation has been growingat around 10% per year and thefleet is now 1,000 larger than it wasin 2000. Whilst activity levels in2008 were lower than 2007, they arestill higher than 2006.

Tough times need toughresponses.

Brian Humphries, EBAA president

Business aviation – reality andperception; are they the same?

Germany’s DC Aviation GmbH, whichis consolidating its FBO presence inMalta, is in negotiations with anairline to develop a vip charterservice. “We are also in discussionswith other potential customers in theMediterranean region,” says StanleyBugeja, md DC Aviation Ltd (Malta).“We hope that in 2009 we willcomplete the first Maltese FBO incollaboration with the Maltesegovernment and Malta internationalairport. Additionally we wish tostrengthen the presence of DCAviation in the Mediterranean region

and continue to contribute to thegrowth of charter sales. We alsobelieve we will reach potentialcustomers who might requirebusiness jet management through aMaltese infrastructure.”

Bugeja says the latest statisticspublished by the EBAA shows thatMalta has registered a growth inbusiness aviation activity. “Grantedthe activity in Malta is still very smallwhen compared to other Europeanairports but growth in the currenteconomic climate is no mean feat.”

The Maltese government, Bugeja

says, has taken a number of economicmeasures to attract high net worthindividuals and industries. “As a directresult the number of movements ofbusiness jets to the island has risenand, although Malta is a smalleconomy, it has so far not experiencedthe economic downturn in the sameway as mainland Europe.”

DC Aviation, he adds, recognisedthe potential of Malta back in 2007and in 2008 established an officeoffering business jet handling whichalso served as a regional sales officefor its fleet of over 35 business jets.

DC Aviation negotiates with airlineto develop vip charter operation

Comlux has received approval fromMaltese Authorities to operate itsAirbus fleet in Low VisibilityOperations down to Category 3Aautomatic landing minima.

Approval means that Comluxbecomes one of the first vip charteroperators able to offer the highestlevel of operational reliability to its passengers.

Category 3A approval will allow the Comlux Airbus fleet tooperate in conditions where visibilityat the destination airport is reduced to 200 metres instead of thenormal required minimum of 550

metres. This approval is a precursorto an application for licence tooperate to visibilities as low as 75metres, the minimum permitted for any operator with currentindustry standards.

Separately, Comlux is moving itscharter and aircraft managementdivision based in Zurich – Fly Comlux– to new offices at Zurich Klotenairport in April. Four of its aircraft arebased in Zurich.

Comlux has recently takendelivery of a second A318 Elite,extending its Airbus fleet to threeaircraft available for charter.

Comlux wins low visibility approvalBirmingham base and a newdirector of flight ops at Twinjet

Twinjet has taken the ‘reluctant’decision to move its Airbus CorporateJet from Luton airport after aircraftparking charges increased by over200% late last year.

Now based at Birmingham, theACJ is regularly used by heads of stateand overseas royal families. Twinjetreports that Birmingham’s parkingcharges are less than a quarter ofLuton’s and the move enables thecompany to keep operations efficientat times when the aircraft is not in theair or overseas.

Meanwhile, Twinjet has welcomedCaptain Andy Stewart as new directorof flight operations. Stewart, who has25 years experience as a pilot, joinedthe company from Easyjet where hewas an Airbus captain. He waspreviously a Flight OperationsTraining Inspector with the UK CAAwhere he was closely involved withthe introduction of the Boeing 777into service with British Airways.

Weather Modification, Inc (WMI) hastaken delivery of five new HawkerBeechcraft aircraft at their facility inFargo, US. Two King Air 200GTs, twoHawker 400XPs and one Hawker900XP were test flown and accepted by WMI and will be used for air quality monitoring, atmosphericresearch and cloud seeding missionsin Saudi Arabia.

With 10 WMI turboprop aircraftcurrently in Saudi Arabia, WMI beganthis mission in the winter of 2006 in an effort to replenish the region’sunderground aquifers and increaserainfall in the Kingdom.

“This marks a significant step of a major mission for us,” says WMIpresident Pat Sweeney. “We’ll providethe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with thetools they need to perform the mostadvanced cloud seeding andatmospheric research projects in theworld, with the goal of increasingrainfall in a country that needs it.”

Before flying overseas to begin the mission, WMI will work with Fargo Jet Center (FJC) to modify and equip the planes with cloudseeding equipment and atmosphericresearch instruments. FJC is anaircraft maintenance and avionicsrepair station and a designatedHawker Beechcraft Service Center. As of this past year, FJC has completed more than 30 specialmission aircraft conversions.

“It is a testament to our specialmission team and the processes theyhave in place,” says Sweeney. “It iscertainly not an easy process, but we

have an incredibly talented teamretro-fitting these aircraft to makethem mission-ready for projects

around the world.” The aircraft modification process

has already begun to make the aircraftmission-ready by April this year.

Without permanent surface water,agriculture in Saudi Arabia isdependent on irrigation frompumped groundwater. Public andindustrial water needs are currentlymet by expensive desalination plants.

According to a United NationsEnvironmental Program Report, thepresent rate of groundwaterwithdrawal from the region threatensthe Saudi aquifers, and with increaseddevelopment and population growth,groundwater contamination becomesan additional concern.

“The situation isn’t dire in SaudiArabia, but it certainly is serious and

can’t be ignored,” adds Sweeney.“There are limits to the capacities ofthe desalination plants and waterpipelines the country has in place.”

Atmospheric water in the form ofprecipitation is one of the primarysources of fresh water in the world.However, a large amount of waterpresent in clouds is never trans-formed into precipitation on theground prompting scientists andengineers to explore augmentingwater supplies through cloud seeding. The ability to enhanceprecipitation through cloud seeding is highly dependent on the propertiesof the clouds, aerosols and theatmospheric environment.

This marks the third year ofresearch and cloud seedingoperations conducted by WMI inSaudi Arabia. Officials estimate theresearch to take another three to five years to collect the necessary data and conduct the exploratoryseeding trials.

In total, WMI will provide 12 newaircraft, including pilots and crew,which will focus on the entire countryof Saudi Arabia. WMI expects all 12 tobe operational by March 2010.

4 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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Jim Allman (left) of Blackhawk Aviationand Malcom Humphries celebratedelivery of the Blackhawk B200.

Wing-mounted flares form part of the specialist equipment fitted by Fargo Jet Centerfor WMI’s weather research work.

Blackhawk debut brings Capitalgains as businesses cut spending

Continued from front page

Performance statistics to date, hereports, are excellent. “For example, atrip from Bristol to Cannes would takeclose to three hours in the King AirB200. The Blackhawk will get up toeight passengers there in just twohours and 15 minutes, with nodifference in price.”

Humphries adds: “In these difficultfinancial times, when both privateindividuals and companies arelooking carefully at their Europeantravel budgets, it is easy to market thecost, comfort and speed advantages ofour new Blackhawk.”

Based at Exeter airport, Capital AirCharter employs more than 30 pilotsand ground crew, with nine aircraftbased across the UK. Operationsrange from European private aircharter to emergency medicaltransfers and urgent freight deliveries.

See also Capital Aviation landsaeromedical contract in EBANFebruary 2009.

Hawkers undergo modification for cloud seedingmissions to replenish aquifers in Saudi Arabia

An onboard electronics rack records data from research missions.

Leyana Forrest demonstrates the space of a 44-seat Boeing 737-300.

Cologne attracts some phenomenal businessEmbraer has named Nayak AircraftServices an authorised Executive JetService Center. This is the firstmaintenance, repair and overhaulcompany to serve Embraer’s Phenom100/300 customers in Germany.

Nayak’s Cologne facility will becapable of providing full serviceaircraft care including routine

inspection, scheduled andunscheduled maintenance, airframe,engine, avionics and other systemsrepairs, 24/7 assistance, an AOGmobile rescue team and an inventoryof expendable and repairable parts.

Separately, Dublin-based JetBirdwill be offering a point-to-point, on-demand private jet service in Europe

from mid-2009. JetBird is intended tooffer the benefits of traditional privatejet usage, at a fraction of the cost ofbranded private jet operators.

The first 10 Phenom 100 aircraftwill be based at Cologne andmaintained and handled by Nayak. Atotal of 100 aircraft will be operated byJetBird by 2012, the company says.

Titan sports new 44-seat 737-300 charter addition

The UK’s Titan Airways has brought a 44-seat Boeing 737-300 into service.Alastair Kiernan, commercial director, says: “People will still charter althoughwe hear a lot about how bad times are. Charter is still forward booking but Ithink clients will be careful where they put their money. I imagine it will bealmost like the post 9/11 events where confidence was weak and instead ofbooking two to three months in advance, charter will be confirmed two to threeweeks in advance.”

Charter demand, Kiernan says, is coming in from the automotive, pop/rockand sports sectors, with the emphasis mainly on football teams. “The demandis largely Europe-oriented because of the range of the 737-300QC,” he says.

The aircraft, he says, is configured with leather seats in a four abreastconfiguration, 36 forward facing seats with a generous 60 inch seat pitch andeight seats arranged in two club fours with adjustable table.

NEW FOR 2009See this issue’s

digital edition atwww.ebanmagazine.com

APRIL 2009 5EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

This month our ‘Me and My Aircraft’feature examines the single engineturboprop arena, in which there arefour established contenders. Theseaircraft have very differentcapabilities, and so whether theybear comparison with each other isdebatable. The rugged and forgivingCaravan is a capacious hard worker,while the more sporty Meridian andTBM series aspire to compete withthe very light jets.

In this report we talk to someowners and operators about theaircraft they fly, their strengths andfailings. We asked about maintenancesupport, dispatch reliability,operating capabilities and value-for-money, as well as more generally forthe best and worst aspects of theaircraft, and most desirable upgrades.

Only EBAN readers who we havebeen able to verify as confirmedcurrent users of a particular aircrafttype are given access to that aircraft'ssurvey forms.

Next month we will be looking atlong-range and large jets, so if youwish to make your voice heard, pleasedo be in touch very soon. This featureis nothing without you!

The future looks bright for reliable singleturbines, with SE-IMC on the horizon at last

Me & My Aircraftthroughout 2009

MAYLong range and large jets

JUNESingle engine helicopters

JULY Small jets

AUGUSTTwin engine turboprops

SEPTEMBERTwin engine helicopters

OCTOBERVery light jets

NOVEMBER Cabin class piston aircraft

DECEMBERSuper midsize jets

Make your opinion count!Whichever type of aircraft you own or operate, we are keen to hear your views. Log in atwww.ebanmagazine.com and youwill find voting forms for each typein your fleet. It takes a fewmoments to complete, and themore replies we receive the betterour final reports will be. Your usernumber and pin is on the back ofthe mailing sheet included withyour magazine, or request areminder by email on the web site.

Don’t delay, take part today!

TBM850

Pilatus PC-12

Cessna Caravan

Piper Meridian

ME & MY AIRCRAFTSingle EngineTurboprops

Owners have long argued that singleengine turboprops (SET) have provensufficiently reliable and safe for IMCoperations, but current regulationstill does not allow this without aspecific derogation. The potential for lower cost, yet still speedybusiness transport is obvious, so howclose is a change in the rules? EBANasked EASA for the latest status, andtook the opinions of the aircraftowners themselves:

Word from EASAThe current applicable regulation isEU-OPS (Regulation (EC) No1899/2006 of the EuropeanParliament and of the Council of 12December 2006 amending CouncilRegulation (EEC) No 3922/91 on the harmonisation of technicalrequirements and administrativeprocedures in the field of civilaviation), which does not allow Single Engine under InstrumentMeteorological Conditions (SE-IMC)in Commercial Air Transport (CAT).In the meantime, EU Operators may submit a derogation underarticle 8.3 of EU-OPS for the purposeof being authorised under SE-IMC.Such derogations must be

approved by the National Authorityand by the Commission.

With the Agency’s extension ofresponsibilities to rule making in theareas of flight crew licensing and airoperations, EASA has recentlypublished a Notice of ProposedAmendment (draft rules) for OPS(NPA 2009-02). These draft rules donot yet cover any such provisionseither. However, the Agency willlaunch a rule making task in 2011(MDM.031) in order to allow SE-IMCoperations.

EASA has published on its web site a study about the risk assessment for SE-IMC operations:http://www.easa.europa.eu/ws_prod/r/r_research.php. This study supportsSE-IMC operations and recommendsa series of risk mitigating measures.The study can be currently used insupport of the above derogationrequests, and will be used as a basis forthe rule making task MDM.031.

The operators’ viewpointBruno Budim of Caravan operatorBenAir is impatient that most civil aviation authorities and EASAstill hesitate to allow commercialoperations in IMC and at night

EASA will consider rule changes – but not until 2011although statistical evidencedemonstrates higher safety thancomparable twin aircraft.

“We are thankful that the Nordiccivil aviation authorities in particularfor decades have had a pragmaticapproach to the subject allowing us tomature and develop operations thatare safer and more efficient than withcomparable light-twins,” he says.

“At a time when general aviation ispressured by economic andenvironmental constraints unseenbefore, SET aircraft offer a uniqueplatform to meet tomorrow'schallenges: the safety case is verystrong and has been made in Europeas well as in the US, Canada andAustralia, the economics have provenreliable and viable on many routeswhere light twins cannot offer afinancially-sustainable alternative,and finally the environmental case isby design and by far an unmatchedfirst-in-class.”

Should SET operations besuccessfully integrated into EU-OPS,BenAir believes it will be ideallyplaced to initiate and develop new

projects in areas where it is alreadyactive and to support other fellowoperators in areas where it is not – beit operationally or geographically.

Says David Fuller, pilot for UK-based Glass Eels Limited: “The CAA’s desire to stop SE-IFR is crazy.These aircraft have a wonderful safety record which is only tainted byicing accidents. The fact they haveone engine plays no part in theaccident statistics.”

John Doman, Cessna’s vicepresident of propeller sales is notconfident that progress will be madein the short term. “There are solid,statistically proven arguments for theimproved safety of a single engineturbine over (for example) olderpiston twins, but to this stage we(Cessna and other OEMmanufacturers of single engineturbine aircraft – Pilatus, Piper,Socata) have not been successful inhaving EASA take positive action onthis issue,” he told EBAN. “Weformerly had a very proactive andenergetic effort from SETA (SingleEngine Turbine Alliance) which was

6 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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On the flight back to Scandinavia after exhibiting at the Euravia air show in Cannes last year are (left to right) Pierre Lacorne, JAR-FCL CRI/CRE for Cessna single engine turbines(SET), member of the board of Aviation Sans Frontières, a French NGO providing air support services in Africa with two Grand Caravans, Peter Bennedsen, Caravan pilot, founder and president of BenAir, and Bruno Budim, sales and business development director of BenAir

Low costs, high reliability and low depreciation drawpraise from Caravan’s loyal followers

According to EBAN’s database thereare Caravan owners in twentycountries around Europe and theMiddle East. The largest populationresides in Germany, where 18 aircraftare in the hands of 14 differentowners. Indeed throughout Europemost owners have only one or two

Caravans each, with the largestcompany fleet being the five 208Bsoperated by BenAir A/S of Denmark.

We interviewed a cross-section offive owners about their experienceswith the aircraft including BrunoBudim, sales and businessdevelopment director for BenAir.Perhaps not surprisingly he is a bigfan of the Caravan, which he says hasan “unmatched economic modelwith predictable and low directoperating costs and low assetdepreciation”. High praise indeed, inthese cost-conscious times.

In particular Budim points to thesturdy design and reliable buildquality, with no airframe inspectionsrequiring extended periods on theground. Support from themanufacturer is very good – despite afew bad surprises such as landinggear inspections that too often turninto landing gear replacements. Partsare decently priced, and the quickchange capability very versatile, he

adds. So what can Cessna give theowner who already has everything?“An engine upgrade would bewelcome,” he says, “and maybe morepower when operated in cold areasand/or for activities such asparachute dropping.”

BenAir ordered 15 new CessnaCaravans in October 2007 for sale toits customers and prospects and toeventually support its ownoperations. This order is thought tohave been the largest Caravan orderin Europe and it followed thecompany’s earlier purchase of 10 newCaravans that are now flying for itscustomers and in its own operation.

BenAir also flies Let 410 UVP-E20s, a Fairchild Metroliner, ShortsSD 360s, a Citation II, as well as a fewpiston aircraft primarily for flighttraining, and a couple of turbinehelicopters. “While we have beenconservatively growing our fleet, wehave also put significant efforts inleaning it out – for instance by

phasing out the Pilatus PC6 Porterand Cessna 406 from our operationsand concentrating on Caravans,”says Budim.

The company sells new Caravansto customers, and will add remainingaircraft to its own fleet. The CessnaCaravans allow it to tackle the “first orlast miles” segment of the air cargomarket, operating mostly at theoutskirts of tier-one customers’networks as feeders and dispatchers.They have been delivering mail,newspapers, parcels and freshproducts to regional capitals ofNorway for more than 15 years –claiming a reliability and economywhich no dedicated twin-engine

CARAVAN/GRAND CARAVAN

There are four current Caravanmodels, all deriving from the originalCessna 208 Caravan I which first flewin 1982.

The line-up starts with the Caravan675, suitable for a variety of aerialworks, cargo or as a passengeraircraft with the option of a moreluxurious ‘Oasis’ factory-fitted interior.The name reflects the switch to themore power ful 675 shp PT6A-114Aengine as standard in 1998. Theaddition of floats creates the secondmodel, the Caravan Amphibian.

Cessna introduced the 208BGrand Caravan and SuperCargomaster in 1986, these featuringan extended fuselage and large bellypannier.

There are now approaching 400 of the 208 model in service and well over a thousand of the larger208B. The propor tion of the fleetactively offered for sale at this time islow, at around seven per cent, withprices ranging from $620,000 to $2.3 million.

composed of the OEMs above, inwhich we attempted for over 10 yearsto get this accomplished. It hasn’thappened yet and I can’t predictwhen or if it will happen.”

But we’ll give the final word toLubomír Cornák of Piper OK as: “Ifanybody asked me about myChristmas wish regarding thebusiness, I would ask for Europeanregulators to approve the single-engine turbines for IFR commercialoperations. This may open newhorizons to the whole aviationcommunity and I believe, it wouldtransfer our general aviation fromobsolete and underpowered pistontwins to modern age of reliable turbineaircraft. Myself being a flight instructorand examiner, I always prefer thesingle-turbine over two sets of pistons.I am frequently asked if I am notconcerned about safety, but theanswer is: Safety is the very reason.”

Development of the Extra 500 six-seat ‘turbine business tourer’continues apace, with productionhaving started in January. The firstaircraft is expected to be deliveredduring April to Berlin.

Extra had delayed the start ofproduction of the 500 in order toselect a glass cockpit for the entireline, and make refinements to thepressurisation system, cabinheating and cooling, the electricalsystem, and to incorporatemodifications derived from flyingthe demonstrator in Europe, theUS and on ocean crossings.

The Extra 500 will featureAvidyne’s Entegra glass cockpitsystem, comprising the FMS900wFlight Management System withnew PFD and MFD panels.

One for thefuture...

APRIL 2009 7EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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aircraft can match. When the rightopportunities occur, BenAir aims toeither extend its current activities ormove into other typical fields forCessna Caravan operations such asshort-distance passenger shuttleservices as operated for the good ofsmall, remote communities.

“When we bought our firstCaravan almost 20 years ago, wewere attracted by the versatility ofthe aircraft and the simplicity of thedesign. Our positive opinion hasonly been strengthened: the originaldesign is a masterpiece as far asreliability and versatility areconcerned, and to this comesexcellent economics. Its directoperating costs are very competitiveand the depreciation over timeamong the lowest seen. The Caravan is the ultimate economicchoice in its category, it allows todeploy reliable services inconditions that are profitable for allstakeholders – safety is high,customers pay less, airlines can beprofitable, and the environment ispreserved,” says Budim.

The current times may bechallenging but BenAir seesnumerous projects for single engineturbine operations developing. Even routes that are affected byfalling volumes or payloads becomeright for the Caravan that wouldpreviously have been too small. “But we will continue to growcautiously when the economics workout. We do not think in terms of flyinghours or flown miles. Better safe onthe ground than flying losing money,”he adds.

BenAir has trained more than 250 pilots on Caravans, haveaccumulated more than 60,000 hourson commercial SET operations and claims to be Europe’s mostexperienced Caravan service station.It has also been involved in multipletransactions of single engine turbine

aircraft selling to other EU countriesprimarily but also to Brazil, the US,and South Africa.

BenAir belongs to a privately-heldindustrial group and is a family-runbusiness. Peter Bennedsen, BenAir’sfounder and president of the group, isa successful entrepreneur who hasthroughout his career developedextensive woodworking activities andhas been a key actor of the salvageand turn-around of Vestas WindSystems with two friends after abanktruptcy. Vestas is now the world’sleader in wind power solutions and apublicly traded company. SebastianBennedsen, Peter’s son and ATPLpilot, participates as a non-executivemember of the Board and BrunoBudim, Peter’s son-in-law, has joinedthe group as a sales and businessdevelopment director.

When Cessna wave farewell to afinished Caravan off the productionline, they can have little idea whatadventures lie in store for the aircraft.Take just one example: G-EELS.

Glass Eels Limited has owned this208B since new in 1997. It wasbought for the purpose oftransporting live baby eels (elvers) tocustomers in Europe, Scandinaviaand Russia. But the aircraft was usedfor the ‘Now Challenge’ as a supportaircraft on the around the world racebetween a microlite and a helicopter.It has also flown to Senegal with theFrench air rally.

Now pilot David Fuller reports thatthis year the aircraft will also be usedfor parachute dropping, as anothermeans to make ends meet in thesehard times. This should increase theutilisation in 2009 from the currentaverage of around 400 hours per year.

“The Caravan has proved to be the very best aircraft for the corebusiness, but also versatile enough to create other income streams,” says Fuller.

Glass Eels could use more speed

and would appreciate easierrefuelling, but dispatch reliabilitycould not be better, having chalkedup 3,500 hours and twelve years ofoperations without missing a singletrip. “The 208 is in a class of its own,”says Fuller. “As far as we know there isno other aircraft with such a largeinterior space for the cargo, with suchcheap running costs.”

“I was a flying instructor atStaverton flying school for two yearsbefore getting this post, which I’veheld for the last eight. Before that I was a photographer aboard cruise ships where I built hours flying the crew around the WestIndies,” he adds.

Although the European Caravanfleet often finds itself matched withcargo and utility roles, it is also usedas a comfortable passenger transport.Keith Webb, for example, has a GrandCaravan with the 9-place Oasisexecutive interior on the Isle of Man register.

“It just suits me,” he says. “I haveno need for a pressurised cabin, and

have lots of room. The avionics are up to airline standards. You needthe Oasis interior if you wantpersonal comfort.

“The worst thing is that, in my2004 model, the engine monitoring ispoor at advising. It seems more a wayto reject warranty claims whereas thesame engine in air force trainingaircraft shows immediately if it isgoing outside parameters,” he adds.

Overall he is very satisfied with theCaravan’s capabilities, especiallyfrom the perspective of the pilot. “It isamazing to fly, and a good glider,” hesays. “It is amazing how much youcan recover a poor approach!”

Mario D Pons of Calima deAviacion, SL, is also very satisfied withoperating capabilities of his GrandCaravan, but was disappointed thatautopilot servos used to fail.

One anonymous Caravanamphibian operator reportspositively about the payload, cabinand engine, saying it is “a greatseaplane”, but feels that maintenancecosts are high.

The Handbook of Business Aviationweb site (www.handbook.aero) listsdetails of Caravan maintenancefacilities in fifteen Europeancountries and the United ArabEmirates. The most recent addition tothe list is AirMed at Oxford airport,U.K, which has recently become aCessna authorised service facilityspecialising in Cessna 208 aircraft.

Manufacturer’s comment“It is good to learn so many ownersand operators of Caravans aresatisfied to very satisfied. This is consistent with Caravan ownersthroughout the world. People love and value the Caravan due to the inherent correctness of its basicdesign concept, execution, versatility,reliability and performance,” saysJohn Doman, Cessna’s vice presidentof propeller sales.

Regarding operator requests formore speed and easier refueling:“We always are reviewingimprovements to the Caravan andhave recently made significantupgrades with the G1000, GFC700and TKS. We continue to review theoverall aircraft and makeimprovements where the marketdemand and business case warrants.Most people always want aircraft togo faster.

“With the Caravan, its primarymission is to carry large payloads outof smaller airports that other, higherperformance aircraft cannot handle.There is an STC available that offers asingle-point refueling option forrefuelling to take place other thanover-the-wing.

“Cessna has a current study underway to review the maintenance andinspection requirements for theCaravan. We are hopeful this willserve to reduce the Caravan’s cost ofoperation but it is too early to stateany definitive numbers orinformation,” says Doman.

David Fuller, pilot for Glass Eels, poses aboard a moped while Peter Wood, the owner,unpacks at Glenforsa.

8 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Aircraft type Distance Time Fuel burn Planned Minimum (nm) (lbs/gal) filght level required

fuel (lbs/gal)

C208A 912 5hr 9m 1285 (lbs) FL180 1534 (lbs)

PC12 906 3hr 54m 954 (lbs) FL280 1282 (lbs)

Meridian 905 3hr 39m 948 (lbs) FL260 1210 (lbs)

TBM850 903 3hr 18m 193 (gal) FL260 234 (gal)

Route: EKCH – LIRF, Arrival alternate: LIRA

Aircraft data provided courtesy of Jeppesen. Not for operational use.

For additional information on Jeppesen’s ITPS services, visit www.jeppesen.com.

1. The max altitude for a Caravan is FL200 as it is an un-pressurised cabin aircraft

(assuming O2 available for flight crew). For this reason the flight time/fuel burn will

be greater than other aircraft.

2. The TBM850 releases fuel flow in Gallons and not Lbs. This is reflected in the

data.

3. Each aircraft will be different so the below figures are based on standard

manufacture data.

4. All routes planned on airway structure. Because of different climb/descent rates

and other factors the overall distances are slightly different.

Single engine turboprops by numbers

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As with the Pilatus PC-12, JetFlyAviation SA probably has Europe’slargest fleet of TBM aircraft, thesebeing a mixture of 700 and 850variants. EBAN’s readership recordsreveal owners in seventeencountries, and the greatestconcentration in the UK. However,the British register hosts only oneTBM700 and two TBM850s theremaining dozen or so of the UKcontingent being US registered.

Reporting on his experience withhis TBM700B, Swiss owner AntalRajnak is very satisfied with theavailable maintenance support.Perhaps this is only to be expected,however, as his aircraft is maintainedby the factory in Tarbes, to which heawards high scores for “excellentcompetency and performancebeyond my expectations”.

He is equally very satisfied withthe TBM700’s dispatch reliability,having had no flights cancelled fortechnical reasons in more than twoyears of operations. “The aircraft is avery capable, top equipped aircraftcoping well with all kinds ofoperational challenges (weather,range, short runways etc),” he says.Its best aspects are its outstandingperformance and flying qualities, thebuild quality and the supportprovided by the manufacturer. Itsworst, he says, is the performanceloss when using the InertialSeparator at altitude.

“RVSM is the only option I do nothave,” says Rajnak. “Most aircraft aredelivered with all options in placefrom the factory, making the list ofdesirable upgrades very short.”

Also sending his aircraft to Tarbesfor maintenance, but rather lesshappy about it, is Brian Strickland ofArrow Flying Associates, Ltd. The UK“badly needs a reliable maintenancebase,” he says.

He is satisfied with hisTBM700C2’s dispatch reliability,although the aircraft has suffered along history of avionics problemswhich, he believes, probably stemfrom the fact that there are so many

manufacturers’ parts involved. “Thisis probably not an issue now theyhave gone over to the G1000.”

Its value-for-money drawscriticism too. “It is made in Francewhich has high social charges foremployees, which are passed on inmanufacturing costs,” he says.

But Strickland reports that thebest thing about the TBM700 is thatit is rugged and forgiving. “It has aVne (velocity never exceed) of 266kts as opposed to the Piper Meridianor Jetprop which is 170. You can loadit up and go anywhere if the runwaysare long enough.”

Some buyers of new TBM850s arereported to have sold their deliverypositions or postponed orders due to the current financial climate,although Daher-Socata deniesreceiving any cancellations. So inMarch this year the manufacturerlaunched a new programmedesigned to help with affordability,dubbed ‘Fly and Share your TBM’ or ‘FAST’.

The joint ownership scheme is the first of its kind offered bySocata, and has been trialled by USdealers earlier this year. “It has

proved a success so we have decidedto open the scheme worldwidethrough our internationaldistributor and support network,"the company says.

FAST is a four-year agree-ment ideally suited for twoshareholders on a one-third/two-thirds co-ownership basis, butcould accommodate up to threeshareholders per aircraft. Aminimum 100 days of exclusive useis provided each year on anunlimited flight hour basis.

TBM’s distributors draw upcontracts and can offer customersaircraft management, maintenance,online flight scheduling and aircrafttracking, training, hangarage,concierge services and insurance.Shareholders are responsible fortheir portion of the initial aircraftpurchase, for which non recoursefinancing is available with aqualified minimum down payment.

A monthly programme fee coversmanagement and administrativeservices, and a fee per flight hour isassessed to cover all scheduled andunscheduled maintenance items.

Manufacturer’s comment“In this current economy, the TBM850 is the best choice and the rightalternative to business transportationneeds of medium and smallcompanies, and Daher-Socata istotally committed to backing thisaircraft with the best customerservice possible,” says NicolasChabbert, the senior vice-presidentof Daher-Socata General Aviation.

“The TBM 850 is the world’s fastestsingle engine turboprop, with amaximum cruising speed of 320 KTASat 26,000 ft (in ISA conditions).

“An 850-shp version of Socata’sproven six-seat TBM 700 turbopropbusiness aircraft, the TBM 850combines the cruising speed andtravel times typical of light jets witheconomical direct operating costs,while offering the range and excellentpayload capacity of turbopropaircraft.”

Socata launches joint ownershipscheme for the TBM850

Daher-Socata delivered its 500th TBM aircraft in February, in a special gold and white color scheme at the request of its US buyers.Keys to the TBM 850 were handed over by Jean-Michel Léonard, president of Socata during a ceremony at the factory in Tarbes, France.

TBM 700/850

The prototype TBM700 made its firstflight in 1988, the result of acollaboration between Aerospatialeand Mooney (hence the M in themodel name). Shor tly after the firstdelivery in 1990 the US manufacturerpulled out of the programme, leavingall production in France.

The TBM700 was replaced by themore powerful TBM850 in 2006 aftera production run of well over 300.There were 60 TBM 850 deliveries in2008 – twelve to European buyers–and the total fleet of TBM aircrafthas recently passed 500 aircraft. Pre-owned asking prices range from$1.49 million to $2.85 million.

The current model features GarminG1000 avionics.

Choosing a mission to compare the

capabilities of the four major aircraft

types considered in this survey is

difficult, as the Cessna Caravan is

designed for rather different roles.

However, Copenhagen to Rome is

probably a business mission near the

comfort limits of the PC12, Meridian

and TBM850, and so provides an

interesting comparison of those

three. The figures provided by

Jeppesen are for a typical aircraft,

and show that the TBM850

completes the trip in the shortest

time, while the Piper Meridian uses

marginally less fuel. Which aircraft an

individual buyer selects will surely

come down to a balance between

acquisition cost, operating costs and

cabin preferences.

APRIL 2009 9EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

As an air charter operator how much of your business is booked by brokers? Forty per

cent? Sixty per cent, or more?

The charter broker is a vital link in the business air transport process, and in some cases they account for a majority of a fleet’s flight hours.

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You’ll never find a better opportunity to put your services in front of buyers from all over Europe and Middle East.

Contact Mark Ranger 01279 714509mark@charterbroker.aero

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PLUS A ROUND-UP OF CARGO, PASSENGER AND BUSINESS AIR CHARTER NEWS

Looking fora share inUAEgrowth

EasyaccessFlight pre-clearance expansion will speed travel to US

With relatively few Meridians flyingaround Europe our survey yieldedonly a couple of responses. MikeDrake of PJ Group, Ireland, reportedbeing satisfied with the dispatchreliability, operating capabilities andvalue-for-money of his US-registeredexample. However, he is currentlyvery unhappy with the availablemaintenance support. “MannAviation after 15 years say they do notwant to service the aircraft any more,”he told EBAN.

The best thing about the Meridian,he says, is its value for money from ato b, while the worst thing is thehandling on the runway.

The company in Europe with thegreatest experience of Meridianoperations must surely be Piper OK as, the manufacturer’s dealer inthe Czech Republic. It manages fiveMeridians in its NetFlight programmewhich includes both private aircraftmanagement and fractionalownership. “Some aircraft we operateare fully owned and some arefractional, but they are all collectivelyoperated as a single fleet,” says PiperOK’s Lubomír Cornák.

“So far we didn’t have to cancel asingle flight due to mechanicalreasons. The Meridian can fly 700 kmtrips with four passengers, or up to1,800 km with two,” he adds. “There isnothing available on the market thatcomes close to Meridian in terms ofcost per mile.”

He cites the recently introducedAvidyne MLX-770 datalink as themost desirable upgrade, providingEuropean operators real timeweather data, including radarpictures.

“All customers would add a slightlybigger cabin on their wish list, butthey collectively agree that the costfactor is higher priority than the cabinsize for them,” he adds. “We evenhave customers who have access to abusiness jet through their parentcompanies, but they still prefer to flyMeridian on shorter trips.

“Our goal was to provide a costconscious alternative to traditionalbusiness aviation arrangements.Some of our customers use theirMeridians as passengers, while otherstake advantage of piloting the aircraftthemselves, with help of ouraccompanying professional pilot.

“We plan on expanding theprogramme throughout Europe, aswe think a customer base exists forthis “low end” business aviationeverywhere,” he says.

So how did the NetFlightprogramme come about? Cornákexplains: “I believe the smalleraircraft like the Piper Meridian maygain greater popularity in the future,as they are the real cost-cuttersagainst traditional business aircraft,while there is no significant sacrificein performance, comfort and safety. That gain in popularity hasonly been delayed by a few yearsbecause of ‘VLJ-fever’ fueled byunrealistic promises. Now that theVLJ market is materialising andeverybody sees that there is no suchthing as a free lunch, customers arerealising that the only low-costturbine travel option available todayis in single-engine turboprops.

“I am sure there are at least 60Meridians operated in Europe, mostof them fully or partly for business.But since they are owned by smallenterprises and individuals ratherthan corporations they get lessvisibility than the TBMs and PC-12s.However, it is not uncommon to seetwo or three Meridians at the sameairport (over recent months I haveseen three Meridians at St Gallen,

Meridian’s low operating costs prove attractive for short-hop business travellers

Worldwidedemand for thePC-12 continues

unabatedEBAN readers with Pilatus PC-12aircraft can be found in 18 countriesaround Europe. Perhaps notsurprisingly, there is a largepopulation in Switzerland but theaircraft is also popular and numerousin the UK.

Competing for the honour ofbeing the largest single owner of thePC-12 are Jetfly Aviation SA, the Swissfractional operation, and Dexter AirTaxi in Russia.

Dexter reports that it now haseight PC-12s on fleet, and that theaircraft has proven itself highlycapable in extremely lowtemperatures. It is now planning asecond operational base in Siberia.The aircraft are offered out on asimple mileage basis at 160 rbl per kilometre.

Operators from Germany, theNetherlands and Luxembourgresponded to our survey, and all wereeither satisfied or very satisfied withmaintenance support, dispatchreliability, operating capabilities andvalue-for-money.

Georg Langhans of Langhans &Soehne GmbH is impressed with theperformance and reliability, butdisappointed with the acquisitioncost, while Hubert Jacobus of T-Birdthinks that his PC-12’s best featuresare the amount of space and thecargo door, and worst thing thecruise speed. For this reason hewould like to see the aircraft feature amore powerful shp engine.

“The PC-12 should be IFR-commercial certified for singleengine and single pilot commercialoperations,” he says.

Joel Hencks of Skytation,Luxembourg, praises the PC-12’spayload, flexible use and endurance,while finding fault with electricalpower failures. He would most like to have an avionics update, suchas is featured in the latest model PC-12 NG.

Manufacturer’s comment“From global economic correctionsto record oil prices, there is littledoubt that change can occur veryquickly indeed. However, the oldsaying that every cloud has a silverlining could well be true in the case ofthe PC-12 NG.

“Dealers report significantlyincreased interest from the tier of jetcustomers immediately above theturboprop. With a cabin sizecomparable to jet aircraft costingmore than twice as much and a fuelburn saving of up to 50 per cent, thecase for the PC-12 NG has never beenstronger,” the manufacturer says.

PILATUS PC-12

The Swiss-built Pilatus PC-12 waslaunched in 1989 and first deliveredin 1994. Its pressurised cabinfeatures a large cargo hatch behindthe wing, and can be used as a purefreighter, in a four passenger andfreight Combi version, six passengerexecutive or nine passenger format.

The current model is the PC-12 NGwhich features Honeywell PrimusApex avionics with four large displaysand a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67P engine, flat-rated at 1,200 shp.

More than 800 examples are nowin service worldwide, and around nineper cent of these are currently offeredfor sale at asking prices ranging from$2.4 million to $4 million.

Biggin Hill, Vienna and Prague).“We have been a Piper Aircraft

dealer for over ten years and as thePiper Meridian was being developed,we saw many people interested inthis ‘everyman’s turbine’. But it is stilltoo expensive for the average Joe-pilot. That’s when the idea offractional ownership first came intomy mind. It took a couple of years todevelop the programme and go overall the legalities, but in 2006 westarted operations with the firstMeridian. Today we have five aircraftwith two more on order. Mostoperations are from Prague, CzechRepublic, but we are starting topenetrate other regions too.

“Our fractional program NetFlighthas two basic forms: OperationalLease and Investment. We typicallystart working with new customers inour Operational Lease programme, togive them the opportunity to get a feelfor the aircraft without the long termcommitment. If they like it, we willtransfer them into an investmentprogramme at the first opportunity.Customers may choose from fivedifferent share sizes, starting with

1/16 share for as low as €1,950 leaseper month and €435 operating costsper flight hour. The 1/16 share allowsthem to use 50 hours per year. Sincethe Meridian is capable of flying tosmall airfields with very low landingfees, but also to major airports wherecosts may be astronomical, we keepthese items out from the hourly priceand rather charge customers theirrespective fees. The basic hourlyoperating costs include one pilot,since some of our customers arepilots themselves and they are glad totake the other front seat. However,our non-pilot customers may opt fora two pilot crew for an additional fee.We are trying to educate them on thesafety issues of single-pilot vs. multi-pilot operations and, as a result, theabsolute majority of our flights arewith two-pilot crew, either includinga piloting customer, or a fullprofessional crew.

“Even though we operate on anon-commercial basis, we applymany of the OPS 1 concepts into ouroperations voluntarily. Our goal is toprovide our fractional owners withsimilar safety standards to

PIPER PA46 MERIDIAN

The Meridian is the turboprop evolution of the original piston-powered butpressurised PA-46-310P Malibu and Malibu Mirage, which first flew in 1979. Someof these have been re-engined with PT6A turboprop engines to become PA-46JetPROP DLX.Known as the PA-46-500TP, the Meridian itself has a longer wing, larger tail, morefuel capacity, strengthened undercarriage and is powered by a 500 shp PT6A-42A.It first flew in 1998 and there are now around 400 in service around the world.About eleven per cent of these are currently actively for sale or lease pre-owned, atasking prices ranging from $940,000 to around $2 million.The current model features the Avidyne Flight Max Entegra integrated avionicssuite, and has a fly-from-factory standard equipped price of $1,896,500.

commercial operations. We start withthings like duty and rest time control,use of SOPs, continuous training, linechecks, performance limits, etc.When an owner proposes a flightwhere standards cannot be met wemake sure that he is aware of the fact and can make a reasonabledecision from there. Beside that, wehave our absolute safety minimumsbeyond which we don’t allow anyoperations, no matter how insistent acustomer might be.

“The Meridian is in no way aCitation replacement. However,missions are often flown by jets whichcould be easily flown by a Meridianfor a fraction of the cost. SomeNetFlight customers charter jets forsome of their air travel and theycontinue doing so even as they own aMeridian share.

“With Meridian they do their dailybusiness hopping, mostly replacing acar ride, but they use jets to fly greaterdistances. We even have oneNetFlight customer who owns a KingAir 200, but for short trips within 500km radius he prefers to use theMeridian, while he rents the King Airto a charter company.

“The Meridian is the easiestturbine aircraft to fly one canimagine. It was designed with theprivate pilot in mind, including many“foolproof” design features, such asthe permanent inertial separator, sothe pilot doesn’t need to worry aboutice ingestion, foreign object damageor engine performance degradationin icing conditions.

“So far, the Meridian has fulfilledall expectations we had. It is true all-weather aircraft with solid perfor-mance and very reasonable costs.”

10 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

The Spanish executive chartercompanies that are doing best in theglobal economic recession are thosethat have had the foresight todiversify. The slowdown in privateand business transportation can beoffset by providing services insectors where demand is steadier,such as flight training, medevac andground handling.

One of the largest such players,Executive Airlines expandeddramatically during last year,increasing its aircraft fleet fromtwelve to 22 jets. Eight of the 10 newjets are Gulfstreams, makingExecutive Airlines the Europeanoperator with the greatest number ofGulfstream jets.

But the focus is on developing FBOfacilities as well as its chartercapacity. At the beginning of 2008Executive Airlines was granted alicense to manage one of two FBOconcessions within a new privateaviation terminal at Barcelona’s ElPrat airport, the other going to a jointventure between Gestair andAssistair. Each has 321 square metresof floor space, and in ExecutiveAirlines’ case about a third of which isassigned to its handling agentEuraservices. The rest of the space isused for vip lounges, crew rest areasand offices for Executive Airlines’operational personnel. “In additionto operating our own aircraft, thecompany offers services to otheroperators,” ceo Juli López adds.

The new private aviationterminal, located in the new airportservices park, has a total surface area

of 1,500 square metres, just underhalf of which is devoted to the FBOlicenses. The rest is shared by AENA(the airport operator), passengercontrol and state security. López

says: “The company will keep on anaccelerated rhythm of jet additionsand it has already signed the aircraftmanagement agreements for 2009for a Beechcraft Premier as well asthe G200 and G550.”

Saz, formerly with Gestair, isbased at Torrejón airport in Madrid.The company has two furtheroperational bases in Gerona and Valencia.

Gestair Group is adapting to meetthe needs of the current businessclimate. “Due to the unusuallypronounced economic downturnwe’ve adjusted our strategy regardingoperating our own aircraft,concentrating again on where wehave 30 years of experience, andwhat we know best, and that ismanaging the aircraft of our clients,”said Jose Ramón Barriocanal, generalmanager of Gestair Private Aviation.“In this respect, and despite thecrisis, we’re constantly adding newaircraft to our fleet, includingrecently a Learjet 60 and a Premier I.”

The current fleet size is 26,including short, medium andlong/ultra long range aircraft rangingfrom Citation CJ1 to Gulfstream 550and Global Express. Gestair has notbecome involved with VLJoperations, considering themunviable at present, but would be

happy to manage such aircraft forowners in the future.

Ramón is looking out for businessopportunities alongside aircraftoperations: “We are constantlyanalysing the market, not only in theFBO division but also in the privatejets and maintenance areas.”

In the past year Gestair Group andIberia, the Spanish flag-carrier,announced the creation of CorjetEurope, a centre for private aircraftmaintenance in southern Europe.Regarding the FBO division, it iscurrently focusing on organic growthrather than acquisitions, extendingits local FBO network and improvingfacilities. “Our new FBO at BarcelonaEl Prat airport is raising the bar interms of comfort and efficiency inthe Spanish business aviationmarket,” says Ramón.

Another leading company,CoyotAir, which deploys more than20 helicopters in Spain and isdeveloping infrastructure foroperations throughout SouthAmerica, enjoys a wide base ofoperations. It can call on 13 AS350sfor aerial works, rescues and forestfire fighting; four AS355s for forestfire control coordination, film andphotography; and four EC135s for airambulance and vip transport.

Francisco Lucas, md, says:“CoyotAir Peru is creating aninfrastructure that will allow thegroup to operate in the rest of theLatin American market while inSpain the group is also committed to further investment that will ensure it continues to meet the needs of clients including thegovernment. Investment anddiversity of activity has been ourphilosophy since launch.”

CoyotAir, founded in 1998, and acharter operator since 2000, waslaunched by its president, ThierryServant, a pilot whose businessexperience included working forL’Oréal Corporation, and FranciscoLucas, a pilot with more than 9,000flight hours.

“There was a dearth of new,flexible and versatile helicopters in Spain that could be adapted for a variety of missions,” says Lucas.

says: “The new terminal has its ownaccess points through the airportservices park, and is thereforeseparated from the main public areas of the airport, thus makingjourneys easier and faster. The newcorporate aviation platform hasspaces for 30 jets which doubles theprevious capacity.”

Maria Encarnación Vivanco,president of AENA, says: “We haveinvested €4.8 million in thedevelopment of the new corporateaviation terminal. Even though thebuilding has been in use since Marchlast year, work continued until lastDecember to adapt the interiorspaces according to the projectapproved by AENA.”

Corporate aviation in Spain hasexperienced strong growth in recentyears although progress has slowedthis year. The increase in the numberof operations carried out in the ElPrat airport illustrates this trend.AENA says El Prat airport registered1,714 runway movements in 2001,while 2008 saw this figure increase toa total of 2,746.

But Executive Airlines, whosecharter operations are focused on thelong-range and the ultra long-rangejet segment, plans to continueexpansion despite the subsequentslowdown.

López says: “Additions to the fleetwill continue to be made in 2009.Two G200 jets are being incorporatedand negotiations for further newadditions are currently being held. Inaddition, the sales offices which werepreviously located in the ExecutiveAirlines terminal at Torrejón airport,have been transferred to the citycentre. The new sales office is biggerand better equipped, enabling us toprovide an even better quality serviceto our customers.”

Executive Airlines managed tennew jets in 2008 and its fleet hasgrown to include no fewer than 15Gulfstreams. The whole line-upcomprises four G550s, a GIV SP,seven G200s, three G150s, along witha Global Express, a Falcon 900EX, aLearjet 45, a Hawker 400XP, a CitationXLS, Bravo and CJ1.

Sergio Saz, commercial director,

Executive Airlines is benefiting from diversification. Pictured at the new corporate El Prat terminal in Barcelona are Juli López, ceo; Jordi Ibañez, gm of handling agents,Euraservices; Carlos Gericó, executive manager; Lola Vázquez, accounts manager and Alfonso Encabo, station manager.

Jose Ramón Barriocanal, generalmanager of Gestair Private Aviation.

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He says: “The XLS was chosen forits near midsize business jet cabinand its light jet operating costs. Alsoits range capability makes it asuitable aircraft if clients wish toreach any destination within Europeand North Africa. The Falcon 900C is

a very interesting and reliable aircraftfor flights from Europe to the US,Africa or the Middle East.”

The arrival of the 2000LX meansthat Corporate Jets XXI will beoperating two aircraft acquired new alongside its pre-owned XLS

and its Falcon 900C.“At present business is not

growing and we expect to averagesome five to six hundred hours a yearper aircraft,” says Puigmarti. “Wereceive many CVs and enquiries frompilots and only hire the ones weconsider the best qualified.Unfortunately we do not havevacancies right now.”

Corporate Jets XXI was formed atthe end 2006 and started commercialoperations in May 2007 with its first XLS. The Falcon 900C was added to its AOC in July 2007 yearand the second XLS joined the fleet inApril 2008.

Companies that have alreadyinvested in new aircraft includeFaasa Aviación. Jesús CarramiñanaArambilet, director of operations,says the company’s fleet has beenrejuvenated. “We have acquired newAgusta A119s, four of them last yearand four this year.”

Faasa Aviación is a veteran ofSpanish aviation, having beenformed some 42 years ago. It now

Zorex’s Angel Nieto, Vicente Santamaria and Ignacio Riera are pictured with a RepsolMoto GP racing team.

“We decided to acquire new state-of-the-art helicopters that couldservice at least three sectors – airambulance, aerial works andpassenger transport.”

Lucas says that CoyotAir believesin keeping up with the latestmaintenance and overhaul standardsincluding ISO 9001 and ISO 14001,Design Organisation Approval andCAMO (Continuing AirworthinessManagement Organisation) and isnow aspiring towards CAMO+. Thegroup's own Part 145 maintenancecentres are based in Cuatro Vientos,Madrid, and Alcazarén, Valladolid.

“The company philosophy is tosearch for new internationaldevelopment opportunities thatleverage our expertise,” says Lucas.“We have transferred the expertisewe have built up in Spain to Peruwhere we operate the AS350-B3 andAS350-B2. These are the mostsuitable helicopters for a terrainwhere aerial works such asprospecting, provisioning andsurveillance of the mining, oil andfuel companies take place betweenheights of 9,000 ft and 16,000 ft.CoyotAir Peru is the first aeronauticalSpanish company to be set up in thecountry with 100 per cent Spanishcapital and has held an operatinglicense since April 2008.”

The headquarters are in theMiraflores district of Lima withoperational bases in Ayacucho and Tarapoto.

In Spain CoyotAir conductssurveillance of power lines,transports building materials andsculptures and refurbishes mountainshelters. “In addition, we carry outdifferent leisure flights ranging fromsightseeing, golf, hunting and motorracing,” says Lucas.

He adds that CoyotAir has, for thelast six years, been the sole providerof live broadcast and filming fornews, sports, documentaries for TVE,the main television chain in Spain. Italso works for other television andfilm companies.

“Sunny Spain’s idyllic landscapesattract makers of movies and TVprogrammes and CoyotAir providesthem with a comprehensive choice ofexperts and technical equipmentenabling the broadcast of live imageswith side and frontal platforms withgyro stabilisation,” Lucas adds.

Equipment includes a Cineflexhigh definition camera, a digitalWescam camera system and base tobroadcast live images.

CoyotAir has invested in the latestequipment to fight forest fires. “Ourhelicopters use helibuckets and bellytanks,” says commercial managerRafael Torres. “These are efficientsystems that are built into thehelicopter. They are lightweight andeasily foldable systems that haveproved worldwide to be the mostefficient weapons in aerialfirefighting. Any helicopter offeringthat equipment converts itself intoan efficient and independentfirefighting tool, enabling it to launchthe largest amount of water quicklyand safely at the optimum time.”

Back in the fixed-wing arena,Jacint Puigmarti, commercialdirector of Corporate Jets XXI, saysthe economic downturn means thathis company will focus on expandingaircraft management and will not, atpresent, further add to the companyowned fleet.

But despite this change indirection, the company expects toreceive a new Falcon 2000LX byOctober 2009 to complement itsFalcon 900C and two Citation XLS.“All aircraft are based in Barcelonaand main demand is for businesstravel,” Puigmarti says. “Once the2000LX arrives, and depending oneconomic outlook, we will decidewhether to look for other places tobase our aircraft.”

operates 14 A119s, six B412s, fourB212s, four H269s, four AT802s, threeKa32s, an A109 and an AT802A and itsmajor focus is on fire fightingoperations for the Spanishgovernment. However, there is astrong emphasis on other kinds ofaerial work, air ambulance/medevac, offshore transport, andphotography and film services aswell as sightseeing and leisure.

“We increased the businessturnover by 17 per cent last year,”says Arambilet, “and we areconfident that the aerial workssector, with the focus mainly on fire fighting, will continue to be good in 2009.”

The company has bases inCordoba and Jerez, and reports thatmany thousands of clients have usedits helicopters over the years for

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12 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

leisure trips in Spain and also for viptransport in Europe and North Africa.“Our helicopters offer a range ofcapacity from seven to 13 passengersand this provides great flexibility forboth leisure and business use,” saysArambilet. The company also hasTRTO and maintenance operations.

But despite diversification andfleet renewals to attract new clientsall charter companies in Spain areaffected by the economic realities.

Aeronaves del Noroeste (Airnor)has three bases – Helipuerto deGuillade, Pontevedra, Santiago deCompostela and Torrejón. As well asa good geographical spread it has adiverse base of operations includingpassenger, freight, air ambulance/medevac, survey and surveillance,photography and film, aerial worksand fire services. Still Julio DoradoAlvarez, operations manager,confirms: “The market is very hard.”

But, he says, Airnor has the benefit of good facilities and has nodifficulty in finding qualified andexperienced pilots for aircraft such asits most recently acquired CessnaCitation 500SP.

Mayoral Aviation’s long-standingstrategy to develop the medevac side of its business since 11 years ago pays dividends in times ofeconomic slowdown and 2009 hasproved no exception.

“It is a steady business whereas

executive charter is more subject tochange,” says director of marketingPaulo Vassar. Owned by one of the

largest Spanish entrepreneurshipgroups in the textile industry, thecompany launched 23 years ago,

and now offers executive charter,aircraft management and consulting,registration and licensing of aircraftas well as maintenance in the south of Spain. But services toMorocco, Algiers, Libya, the Spanishterritories of Melilla and Ceuta, andto the rest of the north of Africa, areimportant facets of its business.Spanish companies working inindustries including oil and gas needtransport and medevac services on aregular basis.

But, at launch, the businessdirection was very different. Vassarsays: “In 1985, the company, namedDominguez Toledo, SA, wasincorporated in order to satisfy theparent company’s need to move itssales force and designers aroundEurope.” Another driving force for thecorporate aviation venture, whichnow operates under the Mayoralname, was the owner’s enthusiasticinterest in the world of aviation.

The company’s fleet has beenrecently augmented. It now has threePiper Cheyennes, two configured forsix passengers and the other for five:two Falcon 100s, designed to carry sixor seven clients. These aircraft aredevoted to both air ambulance andexecutive flights. Vassar says: “Weprovide experienced medical teamsfor assistance during the flight. Wehave worked hard to develop speedand efficiency and, in less than 30minutes from confirmation, an airambulance can take off from ourbase in Malaga. As well as northAfrica we cover all of Andalucia,including the main points of Seville,Cordoba, Granada, the Spanishislands, and our aircraft also have therange to service European citiesincluding London, Paris and Berlin.”

A new Hawker 750, configured foreight passengers, is devoted toexecutive charter, as is the Falcon 200which seats nine passengers.

Vassar says: “Overall business hasslowed down but medevac is a steadysector. We think that the first sixmonths of 2009 will be down but thatbusiness will pick up again in thesummer and then remain on the risethrough to 2010.”

Top Fly, established in 1991 as a charter operator and trainingcentre for pilots and flightattendants, can deploy around 30

aircraft and pilots to service a widevariety of commissions.

Jorge Garcia Veguin, gm, says: “Wehave two aircraft dedicated to bannertowing, one aircraft for vertical aerialphotography, eight for oblique aerialphotography and four helicopters tocover other market needs like aerialobservation and filming.”

He adds: “The key to maintainingbusiness is flexibility. Clients canimplement their own bespokeprogramme taking the advice of oneof our professional pilots andspecialist photographers provided byTop Fly or they may opt to workalongside their own photographers.”

Veguin reports continuingdemand for civil works surveys,topographical studies, urban cityplanning, rural estate overviews andexecutive charter commissions fromsports clubs. “Having beenrecognised as an air servicescompany, Top Fly is authorised toconduct observation flights; flights topinpoint possible filming locations,assist in the tracking of wildlife;inspections of high tension towersand electrical power cables, theobservation of fish and forestry andatmospheric studies. We have 20aircraft dedicated to this sector.”

The courses run by Top Fly’sinternational pilot school focus onpilots and flight attendants and have13 dedicated Tecnam P2002 JF lightaircraft which can run on unleadedpetrol and comply with the Europeanrules regarding aviation fuel whichwill come into force in 2010.

The company also has an MROcentre based at Sabadell withservices for aircraft including Cessna,Diamond, Piper, Metro and ATR.

Santiago Zorrilla, director andflight coordinator of Zorex AirTransport, confirms that the chartermarker in Spain is slow but thecompany has used its initiative toestablish a new base at Liege to workin tandem with its Zaragozaheadquarters. It also has the facilitiesto carry out its own maintenance andthe ability to carry out passenger,freight and air ambulance/medevac

work using its fleet of three MetroMerlins. Zorrilla says: “There are lotsof pilots looking for a job, but theydon’t have enough experience for thekind of operation we do. The mainproblem now is that all the costs inaviation have increased a lot butprices have fallen.”

Zorex reports that it does not do alot of passenger work, but in 2008 itflew a show dog and owners fromCrete to the UK.

Heliair Marbella is enjoying ahigher level of business sincebringing a new EC135 into service toreplace its Bell 206. “Both take sixpassengers plus the pilot but theEC135 has many advantages over theolder aircraft,” says md Ana Perez.“The 135 is much better for use as airambulance offering much greaterspeed and comfort.”

She says that Heliair Marbella isenjoying good demand for airambulance services from both thegovernment and the private sectorbut that the company also fulfillsdemand for passenger charter andphotograph and film commissions.

Paulo Phillips Vassar with Mayoral Executive Jet’s new Hawker 750 at the company’s Malaga home base.

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Corporate Jets XX1 aircraft are based inBarcelona.

Online visitorregistrationnow open

Austro-powered DA42begins deliveriesDiamond Aircraft has received atype certificate for its DA42 NG,powered by the 170 hp AustroEngine AE-300. “We are delighted tobe able to resume volume deliveriesof the DA42, less than 11 monthsafter the insolvency of TAE”, saidChristian Dries, ceo of DiamondAircraft Industries. “The DA42 NG isbetter in every respect with muchimproved performance, increasedgross weight, even better fuelefficiency and the Garmin GFC 700autopilot and is prepared forGarmin Synthetic Vision System.”

Existing DA42 owners will beoffered an upgrade to the Austroengine, and Diamond is planning afactory free scheduled maintenanceprogram to extend the TBO of theengine from 1,000 to 2,000 hours.

FAASA to service AW119 in SpainFAASA Aviación has been appointedan authorised service station forAW119 single engine helicopters inSpain. The company has orderedtwenty AW119s so far, with twelveunits already in service.

Blackhawk boosts Conquest IBlackhawk Modifications hasreceived EASE approval for the useof Pratt & Whitney PT6A-135Aengines on the Conquest I. TheXP135A package can be installed by MCA Aviation in the UK,Beechcraft Vertrieb und Service inGermany and Ruag Aerospace inSwitzerland.

R-R predicts stronghelicopter demandRolls-Royce has forecast a market fornew helicopters characterised bynear-term softness followed by aresumption of growth. Over a tenyear period total helicopterdeliveries are predicted to be morethan 15,000 units, a slight increaseon the company’s market forecast inFebruary 2008. The civil unitforecast has increased by five percent, primarily due to new entry-level turbine helicopters. “With theoil and gas industry, police, airambulance and defence ministriesall looking for new, purpose-builtaircraft, the demand for and benefitsof helicopter usage are clear,” saidKen Roberts, president of the Rolls-Royce Helicopter Engine business.

7X cleared to land at LCYThe Falcon 7X has received approvalfor operations at London CityAirport after a process which beganin April 2008 when Dassault wasgranted steep approach certificationfor the Falcon 7X.

Approval flights at London Citywere performed on October 10th,and dedicated Noise AbatementDeparture Procedures weredeveloped and approved by theEASA’s Joint Operational EvaluationBoard soon after.

Air Culinaire puts London onthe menuUS-based chain of in-flight cateringservices Air Culinaire has opened itsfirst European kitchens in London. It will provide catering to any airportin the London area, claiming qualityto rival “any five star restaurant inNew York City”.

Amsair first to see Garminportable mapsHigh flying entrepreneur and‘Apprentice’ TV programme boss Sir Alan Sugar is the first customer inEurope to get his hands on Garmin’snewly-launched GPSMAP 695, aportable aviation navigation device,for his fleet of Amsair Legacy charterjets and his personal Cirrus SR22light aeroplane.

The GPSMAP 695 displays a mapsimilar to a standard enroute chartand has important features such ashigh and low airways, minimumenroute altitude (MEA) and legdistance. The 695’s IFR map modealso offers more situationalawareness than traditional chartsbecause it subtly displays majorvisual reference points like rivers,county boundaries, motorways andrail tracks from Garmin’s built-inbasemap.

Eagle tugs distributed from GermanyEagle Tugs has appointed FrankeCare System in Germany todistribute the TT-series aircrafttractors throughout Europe. FCS haspurchased a demonstration unit totour the continent.

Dassault hosts ‘E-Forum’The first “Falcon E-Forum” wasrecently hosted by Dassault Falcon,and this will now become a regularinternet based seminar designed toprovide an exchange of informationand best practices with Falconoperators. Thirty two Falcon 7Xcustomers from the United States,France, Mexico, Brazil, Switzerlandand the UK took part in the firstsession. The seminars lastapproximately one hour and focuson one specific topic of interest (ormodel series) per session.

Saudi representation forEmbraer executive jetsEmbraer has named the Riyadh-based Al Saif Group as its authorisedsales representative in Saudi Arabia.The Group will be selling thePhenom 100, Phenom 300, Legacy450, Legacy 500, Legacy 600 andLineage 1000 aircraft.

PremiAir is latest RaisbeckdealerPremiAir’s newly opened fixed wingmaintenance facility at OxfordAirport has become an authoriseddealer for Raisbeck aerodynamicupgrades. In collaboration withHawker Beechcraft at Chester,PremiAir has worked with Raisbeckproducts previously, most recentlyon the installation of a Crown WingLocker System to a King Air C90GTi.

Sikorsky brand goes globalThe Schweizer S-300c, S-300CBi, S-333 and S-434 helicopters are tobe rebranded as Sikorsky GlobalHelicopters, alongside the S-76, S-92and H-92 models.

Citation centres for Belgiumand AustriaCessna Aircraft Company hasappointed FlyingGroup in Belgiumand JetAlliance Technical ServicesGmbH in Austria as new Citationauthorised service facilities.FlyingGroup, based at Antwerp isauthorised for all Citation models,except the Citation X. JetAlliance ofVienna is authorised for 525, 680and 750 models.

I N D U S T R Y N E W S . . .

Existing DA-42 owners will be offered upgrades to the new Austro engine.

APRIL 2009 13EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Sir Alan Sugar – first to land the GarminGPSMAP 695.

Vitoria-based Nordjet Airlines isassessing when might be the besttime to supplement its Citation 550with a second aircraft. It believes thatthe time is not right to expand fromthe charter point of view, but that it isa buyer’s market for aircraft so thesituation has to be weighed upcarefully. “An aircraft with a longerrange would be a useful addition toour operations,” a spokesman said.

Nordjet’s activities are diversifiedacross aerial works, freight,passenger, photograph and film.

After the EclipseSpanish operators that have had tochange the composition of theirfleets following the bankruptcy ofEclipse include Jet Ready and Taxijet.

Jet Ready has adapted its charterlaunch plans to include theacquisition of other types of VLJfollowing the aircraft manufacturer'sbankruptcy in the United States lastyear. “We are preparing to launchoperations in May from our base inValencia,” says md Ignacio Garcia.“We have three Eclipse 500s whichwe maintain ourselves and will nowbe looking to augment them withother VLJs. Obviously the Mustangand the Embraer 100 and 300 aircraftwill be among those considered.”

Garcia says that Jet Ready intendsnot only to add more aircraft but to expand bases of operations toBarcelona, Santiago, San Pablo and Zaragoza.

“The company will focus onexecutive charter for midsizecorporations,” says Garcia. “Despitethe global economic slowdown thebusiness model is sound: in theairline sector you have low cost jets:in the private jet sector you have VLJsthat can operate at a much morecompetitive cost than the larger jets.In addition to this cost advantage wehave the benefit of our ownmaintenance centre.”

Jet Ready has been talking topotential clients for several monthsand Garcia says that the cost andefficiency advantages of thecompany's offering are wellappreciated. “The companies will beable to use our services to dobusiness abroad in the UK, France,Germany and central Europe as wellas throughout Spain.”

Last year Eclipse Aviation filed for Chapter 11 protection in theUnited States Bankruptcy Court forthe District of Delaware, but hassince entered liquidation and ceasedall operations.

Taxijet, which launched in Spainto manage Eclipse 500s forbusinessmen in the Catalunyaregion, is switching its immediatecharter operations emphasis toMustangs with longer term plans toadd Phenoms or HondaJets.

Sales and marketing directorFranc Sanmarti says five Mustangs

will become operational in 2009 inMadrid and Sabadell, 10 kms fromBarcelona. “We are carefullyassessing the best way to expand ourfleet in 2009,” he adds. “The 900metre runway at Sabadell means thatthe HondaJet could be the bestoption for expanding our fleet but weare also assessing the Phenom 100.Much depends on prices, availabilityand certification.”

Taxijet established maintenancefacilities and offices at Sabadellduring 2006 and took delivery of anEclipse 500 in December 2007.Demand for VLJ charter, saysSanmarti, has held up reasonablywell in the economic downturn withcontinued interest frombusinessmen in Taxijet’s homemarket of Spain and Andorra.

“Executives are inclined to chartera very light jet when they are notprepared to book the more expensivelarger jets,” says Sanmarti. “We will,however, be focusing very much onour home market this year. KeyEuropean destinations such asGeneva and London might becomemore important in 2010 dependingon market conditions.”

The 2009/10 EBAN Handbook ofBusiness Aviation in Europe will beavailable soon, and gives details ofmany more Spanish charteroperators. It also lists businessaviation facilities and servicesincluding airports, FBOs andmaintenance centres. The details can be accessed onlinethrough a search of aircraftoperated or the airport bases. Formore information please visitwww.handbook.aero

HANDbook ofbusiness aviation

in Europe

EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

0809

ComprehensiveSpanish data free-of-charge online

Based in Madrid, Sansala (Resto-Vite SL) specialises in sandwichesand salads with an additional menu of simple foods that can beheated on board, serving variousmajor airlines.

“Knowing UK operators, who arecost conscious and having travelledon private aircraft on numerousoccasions I know that on shortsectors, fresh sandwiches areadequate, backed up by anassortment of paninis shouldsomeone like something hot,” saysthe company’s Phil Hutchinson.

“However, the mentality here is somewhat different; onlycatering provided by the airlinecaterers at enormous expense is

sufficient. Multiply the differencein cost over a year on an aircraftthat is operating across Europe onshort sectors and the costdifference could be quitesubstantial to the operator, espec-ially if there are a number of aircraftinvolved. Unfortunately the ‘crisis’has touched everyone and everypenny counts.”

So far Hutchinson’s cost-cuttingsuggestion has not made animpact: “To date we have been ableto work with only one companysupplying sandwiches and saladsdesigned by top chef Ferran Adria –for crew meals. This has now driedup as I assume the crew do not likecold meals!” he said.

Simple catering for a timewhen every penny counts?

Taxijet: emphasis on Mustangs.

AGUSTA

A109C

1990, N591JM , S/N: 7609. TT: 1,737 hours.Single pilot IFR. Fresh annual, 1,200/300hour inspections. HMIs carried out onboth turbines. VIP six place grey leatherinterior, Bose headsets, iPod wired etc,power paint scheme. 1,295,000.00 plus

14 APRIL 2009 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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BUSINESS AIR NEWS

E U R O P E A N

Squirrel hops betweenGreek islands

Page 4Geneva managers add604 to roster

Page 6PC12 fractional schemegrows apace

Page 8Venerable helicopteroperator clocks upthree million

Page 10German broker offersCheyenne II for sale

Page 14Plus our full Danish review

Page 16 - 18

ISSUE 108 SEPTEMBER 2001

Leeds-Bradford based Multiflight will be the first UK owner of a BBJ2 when the green aircraft is handed over at the end of September. See full story on page 12

www.bizjet.com/eban

More than two and a half years have

elapsed since Muk Air started putting

a VFW-614 aircraft on the Danish

register. With TCAS recently installed,

the aircraft is now available for freight

and passenger charter but says owner

Ruben Werjefeldt, he’d never have

tried in the first place if he’d known

how long it was going to take.He said: “It’s been a long and

somewhat political fight. Early on,

problems which we had to overcome

included both support and

maintenance issues.“It took me a year and a half to

convince Airbus to cooperate but

since then, over the last year and a

half, they have been very supportive.

“During the certification process,

an educated crew went elsewhere and

the loss of revenue went into seven-

digit numbers. If I’d known it was

going to take this long, I’d never have

tried to do it. There are more

attractive things you can do.”Muk Air’s 614 aircraft can be

configured to accommodate 18 or 44

passengers or for the purposes of

freight. It is the latter which Muk Air

hopes to pursue the most. Said

Werjefeldt: “There’s less trouble in

freight. If you’re delayed, you don’t

have to book hotel rooms for 44

passengers; if it is a little bumpy, no

one vomits; and if you fly in a

turboprop, no one wants a refund.”

With regard to the vip market,

Werjefeld says one of the aircraft’s

main strengths lies in its ability to

land on short runways. He told EBAN:

“In an 18-seat configuration fully

loaded, I can land at any airport that a

Citation II can land at. We can get

down as short as 800 metres if we are

light – which is unheard of for a

46,000 pound aircraft.”The incentive for vips to fly in a

614, says Werjefeld, does not end

there. “It has a fully stand-up cabin,”

he said. Helmut Kohl preferred the

614 a lot more before the Challengers.

“You have a big first class seat, you

have a hot oven, refrigerators, large

stand-up toilet and big mahogany

tables where you could play roulette if

you wanted.“In the business jet market, it’s for

people who want the extra space. It’s

more than you have in a Dornier 328

JET, it’s larger than the Gulfstream

and if you consider the square area of

the plane, it’s only beaten by the BBJ

and ACJ.”Asked whether potential charter

customers may fret over the safety of

an old aircraft, Werjefeld said: "The

aircraft has been maintained in the

same way as the British Queen’s

Flight; everything has been half-

normal life-cycle.” In terms of economics, Muk Air is

confident that for the right customer,

the 614 could present a huge saving.

Werjefeld explained: “If you compare

it with business aircraft which offer

similar capability and space, and you

want to go somewhere where the size

of the runway might be an issue, then

the price is half what others would

ask. A Global Express, Gulfstream or

Falcon 900 would all have a challenge

getting down on La Maule in St

Tropez. I don’t have any problem and

I’m half the price.“Conversely, if you’re considering

an international trip, we couldn’t

compare with any of these

three aircraft. With 1,300 nautical

miles, we’re way too short

for intercontinental range but

for intra-European trips, we’d be

very competitive.”Muk Air has another 614 which has

been on a US register for two

years and will soon be added to the

Danish register.

‘Supremely-maintained’ VFW-614finally joins Danish register

Leeds awaitsUK’s first BBJ2

Adamantis has purchased a Falcon

900, which is currently managed

by charter and sales broker

Air Entreprise. Vice president Arnaud Poisson

said: “The owner chose the 900

because he wanted a long range

aircraft with a large cabin. We were

also keen to have such an aircraft

available in our charter fleet, as many

of our customers were asking to

charter a long range aircraft.” So far the Falcon’s destinations

have included Africa, the West Indies

and the US. Air Entreprise also manages a

Falcon 50 and owns a twin jet

Aerospatiale Corvette. Poisson

added: “The Falcon 900 is very good

for our image. We have a mixture of

private individuals, company

presidents and show business stars,

so obviously such an aircraft will

attract a great deal of interest.” The

aircraft is an addition to the

existing fleet.Air Entreprise has a large

hangar and a private terminal at

its Le Bourget, Paris base,

combined with handling and

maintenance departments. Poisson said: ”We are currently

working on expansion plans, but have

yet to decide what level of investment

to put in. “The French charter market is

strong and not particularly affected

by economic variables, so we don’t

feel that the investment will be

affected by the US slow down.” The company has found that the

market has remained stable, Poisson

explained: “The private jet market is

very special, as it only concerns a

small number of people world wide.

Consequently it’s difficult to

introduce new ideas onto the market,

although fractional ownership

appears to be succeeding.” The company has found the sales

market to be relatively buoyant also,

and believes it will continue to grow.

“The price of aircraft is currently

being pushed down by the deflated

US market, which has knocked onto

Europe and increased demand,”

he said.

Air Entrepriseoffers long haulflights with itsFalcon 900

Air Taxi has purchased a King Air 200

from Regourd Aviation. Ground

operations manager Jean Pierre

Florent said: “The company chose the

King Air because it suits our needs

perfectly. The range of the aircraft is

around 1,500 nautical miles and the

cabin holds between seven and nine

passengers, depending upon our

configuration.”Air Taxi is based in Tours, France

and operates as a charter company

concentrating solely on a French

client base. The company has already

made a number of domestic and

international flights, particularly

cross-channel, including: Oxford,

Inverness and Farnborough.

Customers are generally vips, ranging

from corporate executives to private

individuals and celebrities. “The

French charter market is not very

strong at the moment. I don’t really

know what has led to the present

climate but it is possibly the influence

of the US market,” explained Florent.

When asked why the company had

chosen a particularly slow time to

purchase an aircraft, Florent replied:

“If a company cannot offer a

sufficient number of aircraft for

charter then customers will look

elsewhere. We bought the aircraft

despite market conditions, because

we are hoping and expecting for a rise

in demand in the foreseeable future.”

Air Taxi startsfleet build-upwith King Air 200

An example of the VFW-614, now offered

by MukAir for charter.

Leeds awaitsUK’s first BBJ2

HANDbook of

business aviation

in Europe

EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

0809

HANDbook of

business aviation

in Europe

EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

0809

BUSINESS AIR NEWS

E U R O P E A N

Pilatus makescomplaint to JAAPage 4

Swedes launch websitefor air charter

Page 5Portuguese delightedwith Citation X addition

Page 9Plus: Where and who tocharter in Ireland

Pages 12-13

ISSUE 117 July 2002

An EBACE press conference provides the setting for Signature Flight Support to join forces with the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in establishing a handling facility at

Toulon-Hyeres Airport. (L-r) Jonathan Soper (Signature), Bernard Lecat, Bernard Stouff (both CCI), Louis Demarque and Peter Whitehead (both Signature). Full story, page 14.

www.ebanmagazine.com

All for one at ToulonOne of Europe’s largest real estate

developers has placed an order

with Embraer for a Legacy aircraft.

Spain’s Fadesa made the announce-

ment at this year’s EBACE, adding

that the aircraft would replace the

company’s existing Hawker 700 in

September of this year.The Legacy will be based in La

Coruña, where the company has its

headquarters, and will carry out

corporate missions to Spain,

Portugal, Romania and Morocco,

where Fadesa is currently active.

“We were looking for a larger

aircraft,” said Jose Luis Macia, Fadesa

financial director. “Our main criteria

were reliability, cabin volume and

value. The Legacy very quickly

became the best, that is to say the

only choice.”Speaking to EBAN's Richard Evans

at the show, Embraer vice chairman

Sam Hill said: “Most of Fadesa's

missions will fall in the category of

2,000nm or under although they will

occasionally need to fly 3,000nm.

They’ve already got several trips

planned to the US.“We’re delighted with the order

and see it as a real breakthrough for

us to start selling and delivering

airplanes in Europe. We’re also

delivering our first airplane into

Europe next month and although

we’re unable to disclose the

customer’s name, the operator will be

GV Executive of Zurich.”

Embraer is now waiting for JAA

certification, which Hill says he

expects next month. While the Fadesa

order brings the total order book for

the Legacy to 74 firm orders and 94

options, we asked Hill about the

Legacy’s popularity specifically in

Europe. He said: “We’ve just started

making inroads into the European

marketplace. We’re delivering two

airplanes into Europe this year which

may not seem like much but for us,

it’s a beginning and we think it's going

to grow substantially. “At the current time, the US is still

the largest market, followed by South

America, where we’ve had some

sales in Brazil.” An extra incentive for operators

in Europe to buy Legacy aircraft is

the announcement of the Total

Legacy Care (TLC) maintenance

programme. The programme covers

scheduled and unscheduled airframe

maintenance during the five-year

period after the delivery of a

customer’s aircraft. When selecting the TLC program,

the customer or operator of a Legacy

pays a fixed hourly rate for the

airframe maintenance based on the

hours flown and operational

parameters. Said a spokesman: “This

covers virtually all the airframe line,

base and heavy maintenance

operations leaving the customer free

to concentrate on the best utilisation

of his Legacy.” TLC is based on a minimum of 400

Spanish developer ready todeploy Europe’s second Legacy

TAG Aviation used this year’s EBACE

to showcase its new handling and

office facilities at Geneva Airport.

The FBO moved just ten metres from

its old premises, which was

considered too small to handle the

increase in traffic passing through.

The company moved into the 300-

metres-squared handling facility and

1,500-metres-squared European

administrative headquarters in April,

a month after completion. Handling supervisor John

Christian said: “We moved because

it’s important to have brand new

facilities in Geneva. PrivatAir and Jet

Aviation were also going to move

here, so it was important to be in this

business centre.” The facilities

include a quick departure lounge and

a larger private lounge with DVD,

refrigerator, coffee machines and

internet access. Along with this is

another spacious lounge with the

same equipment, which can

accommodate a group of twenty. The

crew lounge has a direct view of the

passengers arrival in order to

maximise time efficiency. “We are

TAG reacts to competition at Geneva

Sloane Helicopters has added a Bell

206B helicopter to its AOC in the UK

after what operational services

director Paul Forster described as a

“very long, laborious and painful re-

registration.” The company first spotted the

potential addition in Greece 12

months ago. “We were over there

on a trip and noticed a charter

company had started to cannibalise

two aircraft to keep one of their fleet

flying. We then put a silly bid in for

both machines and they took us up

on it,” he said.The project to make one aircraft

out of the parts was initially

designated for any spare-time that

Sloane’s engineers had. But after a particularly busy year

it was decided that a couple of

workers should be dedicated to

the completion. “From the builders’

point of view it went very

smoothly, particularly as there wasn’t

any real urgency. “It was only after the work had

finished around four months ago

that it became a nightmare due to

Greek bureacracy regarding the

documentation. In fact we eventually

thought it wouldn’t happen, but then

miraculously it came through,”

explained Forster.The Bell will mainly be used for

flight training and charter. “It just

came on the fleet 10 days ago, so it’s

only done some self-fly hire with

some of the members down here but

they’ve all reacted positively to it,”

said Forster. The company didn’t start to

promote the aircraft until the paper

work was completed, so now was the

time to start: “It’s a nice machine –

there’s a brand new interior and it’s

been completely resprayed. “It charters at £480 per hour and

fills the niche for those wanting to go

down to the races (Ascot, Epson), the

Grand Prix and an advantage of

having floats is that it can also go to

Battersea,” he added.This is Sloane’s only Bell 206B and

complements its range of Agusta

109s. “After this I’d like to put a Twin

Squirrel on the fleet (which I know I

could find some good business for)

and also an EC-120,” said Forster.

Sloane proves thatone Bell beatstwo halves

Continued on page 10

JAA certification is expected imminently

for Embraer’s Legacy.

Continued on page 16

OUR NEXT ISSUE:MAY 2008

FINAL BOOKING DATE:APRIL 21st

Special packages are available foradvertising aircraft for sale in EBANand on our web site(www.ebanmagazine.com).

Picture adverts (40 words of text plus colour picture) cost £75 each. You can also choose our new displayadvertising option for largerinventories.

VAT. Contact Elaine Tel: : +144 7973451923 Email: helicoptersales@live.com

AW139S/N 41016 Brand new Pininfarina Edition!Fly home today! Full warranty, pilot andmechanic training, VVIP interior, CocoonII soundproofing, A/C, baggage extension,extended fuel tanks and more! A must see!Tel: +1 954 771 1795 Aero Toy Store Inc.Web: www.aerotoystore.com.. Email:sales@aerotoystore.com

AIRBUS

A318 EliteYear of manufacture: 2010. Availability 3rdquarter 2010 (outfitted). Seating “Eliteplus” with 18 seats, CFM56-5B9/Pengines. Tel: +41 44 205 50 70 ComluxAviation. Email:aircraftsales@comluxaviation.com

BOMBARDIER

Challenger 604S/N 5370. Excellent pedigree, 4,716 totaltime, New Midcoast paint and interior,nine passenger, extended cabin withadditional window, unique aft lav w/twoclosets, Airshow 400, Aerial View cameras,fax/copier/scanner. A must see! Tel: +1954 771 1795 Aero Toy Store Inc. Web:www.aerotoystore.com. Email:sales@aerotoystore.com

Challenger 605“Pininfarina Edition” S/N 5728: Brandnew! Immediate delivery! Factorywarranty, crew and maintenance training.JAR-OPS and EASA compliant, +USD $1.2million in options. Live television system,supersized 21” monitors, and more! Tel:+1 954 771 1795 Aero Toy Store Inc. Web:www.aerotoystore.com. Email:sales@aerotoystore.com

Global ExpressS/N 9139: New Pininfarina Editioninterior. Factory warranty. 1,203 hours TT,JAR-OPS compliant, engines on CorporateCare, Smartparts, heads-up display,Triples, 13 pax w/four place conferencegroup midcabin and 16G divan aft,forward & aft lavs w/vacuum flush toiletsand more! Tel: +1 954 771 1795 Aero ToyStore Inc. Web: www.aerotoystore.com.Email: sales@aerotoystore.com

Global Express XRS“Pininfarina Edition” S/N 9281: Brandnew! Fly home today! Full factorywarranty, pilot and maintenance training,JAR-OPS 1 compliant, HUD, Triples,

SATCOM, ACARS, lightning sensor, two21” bulkhead monitors, High Speed Data,14 passenger, forward and aft lavs. Tel: +1954 771 1795 Aero Toy Store Inc. Web:www.aerotoystore.com. Email:sales@aerotoystore.com

CESSNA

Citation CJG BVCM, CJ 525-0022, TTAF 2,966 hours.Zero hour engines. One owner, ProParts.Eligible for Williams TAP, Honeywell SPZ5000, Honeywell CNI 5000 stack. Mode Scompliant, GNS XLS, Trimble 2000 GPS,RVSM. Offers, please contact CraigLammiman, Tel: +44 (0) 7518398168JetConcept Ltd. Web:www.jetconcept.co.uk. Email:craig.lammiman@jetconcept.co.uk

Citation CJ2Flying Beauty! Travel in style with themost beautiful Citation CJ2+ on themarket! Year: 2007, SN: 525A-0362, TT: 644hours. JSSI, EU-OPS. 6+1 interior. Steepapproach option. 5.4M USD. Tel: +43 22524088 1208 Avia Consult FlugbetriebsGmbH. Web: www.avia-consult.at. Email:used@avia-consult.aero

Citation CJ2Loaded! Maximise your productivity withthe leading CJ2 on the market! Year: 2003,SN: 525A-0168, TT: 2,033 hours. JSSI, IATACare, EU-OPS. Six passengers, Cabin Call,Cabin Briefing, Steep Approach. 4.77mUSD. Tel: +43 2252 4088 1208 Avia ConsultFlugbetriebs GmbH. Web: www.avia-consult.at. Email: used@avia-consult.aero

Citation CJ2Sensational chance: SN 102, Topcondition, year of constr. 10/2002, TT1,365 hours, 970 landings, 2+6 seats,completely equipped, all SBs, hangar-based in EDDK (Germany), 1st hand fromprivate owner, Price: US$ 4.5m. Tel: +492645 131 4407 Email:management@wirtgen.de

Citation Excel2003, S/N 5318: 2,660 hours TTAF, engines& APU on Power Advantage, SATCOM,TCAS II, EGPWS, UNS1ESp/provision for2nd, HF, Proparts, MSG-3 maintenance,nine pax interior, excellent condition! JAROPS 1/EU OPS 1 Qualified. Tel: +1 713 6810075 or +1 201 445 5660 Par Avion Ltd..Web: www.paravionltd.com. Email:info@paravionltd.com

Citation XLSFresh maintenance. Increase your flyingexperience with this beautiful CitationXLS! Year: 2006, SN: 560-5668, TT: 1,209hours. ProParts, JSSI, EU-OPS. Eightpassengers, large lavatory. Fresh 1,200 hrsinspection. 10.6m USD. Tel: +43 2252 40881207 Avia Consult Flugbetriebs GmbH.Web: www.avia-consult.at. Email:used@avia-consult.aero

Citation XLS2007, Price reduced. SN: 560-5676, TT: 916hours. RVSM approved. JAR-OPS and EASAcompliant. Eight place executive interior.Based in Cambridge, England. Tel: +44-1825-713988 V & E European A/C Sales,Ltd.. Email: d.mcd@virgin.net

Citation XLS2006, Price reduced. SN: 560-5658, TT: 762hours. On Power Advantage Plus. RVSMapproved. JAR-OPS and EASA compliant.Eight place executive interior. Based inCambridge, England. Tel: +44 1825 713988V & E European A/C Sales, Ltd.. Email:d.mcd@virgin.net

DIAMOND

DA42 Twin Star2007, 500 hours TTSN, ex IFR air taxioperated. Four seats, 160 kt, >600 nm rangevery low DOC. G1000 + King A/P withAltSel, options : ADF, DME, Storm, longrange, known ice TKS system, “F” reg,based LFPA will be sold to best offer Email:DA42ah@free.fr

GULFSTREAM

G150Like new! Go further than anybody else -the perfect upgrade! Year: 2007/2008, SN:245, TT: 368 hours. JSSI Tip To Tail, EU-OPS. Stunning interior, loaded withoptions. Spare parts kit included. 13.57mUSD. Tel: +43 2252 4088 1207 Avia ConsultFlugbetriebs GmbH. Web: www.avia-consult.at. Email: used@avia-consult.aero

HAWKER BEECHCRAFT

800XPSN: 258382, TT: 2,440 hours. On CAMP.MSP Gold. RVSM approved. JAR OPS-1 &EASA compliant. Nine-place executiveinterior. London City Airport approved. Tel:+44 1825 713988 V & E European A/C Sales,Ltd.. Email: d.mcd@virgin.net

Premier 1First registered December 2005, JAR-OPS 1,UK-based Premier 1. Fresh from 1,200hours check. Only 990 cycles. Great cabin.Fast. Low DOCs. Priced to sell US$3.85m.Contact: Roger Stainton, JetFlight Ltd, Tel:+44 1353 661636 JetFlight Ltd. Email:JetSalesUK@aol.com

PIAGGIO

Avanti II1/4 or 1/2 share on new Avanti II, based inEurope, Corporate 1 interior, contactWinair, GermanyTel: +49 6332 97200Winair, Germany. Email: info@winair.eu

A S I A P A C I F I C E U R O P E L A T I N A M E R I C A M I D D L E E A S T S O U T H A F R I C A

ExecuJet exclusively offers not only a selection of quality pre-owned aircraft, but also over 20 International Sales Directors, the biggest sales force outside of the USA toensure your aircraft receives maximum coverage. Should you wish to market your aircraft for sale, please contact us as we are currently looking for new inventory. ExecuJet’sstringent safety standards ensure all aircraft have undergone thoroughly documented operation, repair and are presented in impeccable physical condition. ExecuJet is also a member of the National Aircraft Resale Association.

UNIQUE BUYING OPPORTUNITIES.

Serial Number: 9015, Year: 1999, Confi-guration: 13 Passengers, Total Time: 4,419 Hrs; 1,691 Cycles, Engines: Rolls Royce BR 710, Maintenance: CAMP, Aircraft: CAMP, Flexible interior configurations, Price: US$ 30,995,000

GLOBAL EXPRESS

AGRESSIVE PRICING

Serial Number: 5434, Year: 1999, Confi-guration: 9 Passengers, Total Time: 7,795 Hrs; 4,496 Cycles, Engines: General Electric CF34-3B1, Program: GE On Point Solutions, Aircraft: Smart Parts Plus, APU: Honeywell GTCP36-150, Maintenance: CAMP, Avio-nics: Collins Pro Line 4 System

CHALLENGER 604 – HOT DEAL

Serial Number: 8069, Year: 2007, Configu-ration: 13 Passengers, Total Time: 219 Hrs; 107 Cycles, Engines: GE CF34-3B1, Main-tenance: CAMP, Program: JSSI Tip To Tail Program, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 4, APU: Honeywell GTCP 36-150 (RJ),Price: US$ 28,500,000

CHALLENGER 850

IMMEDIATELY AVAILABLE

SN: 7489, Config.: 15 Pax, Total Time: 11,800 Hrs; 12,100 Cycles, Engines: General Electric CF34-3BI, Avionics: Rockwell Collins Pro Line 4, Availability: March 2009SN: 7779, Config.: 15 Pax, Total Time: 9,800 Hrs; 13,500 Cycles, Engines: General Elec-tric CF34-3BI, Avionics: Rockwell Collins Pro Line 4, Availability: August 2009

CRJ 200 VIP

THREE AVAILABLE

SN: 5702, Config.: 9 Passengers, Year: 2007, Total Time: 1,274 Hrs; 522 Cycles, JSSI Tip To Tail Program, Price: US$ 25,500,000SN: 5731, Config.: 10 Passengers, Year: 2007, Total Time: 210 Hrs; 110 Cycles, En-gines: General Electric CF34-3B, Mainte-nance: Manufacturer‘s Warranty

CHALLENGER 605 – MUST SELL

TWO AVAILABLE

Now you‘re flying.

CharterAircraft SalesSimplyFlyAircraft ManagementMaintenanceFBOCompletions Consulting

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Serial Number: 9480, Year: 2012, Configu-ration: 13 Passengers, Avionics: Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion, Exterior & Interior still to be specified, Price: US$ 46,500,000

Serial Number: 9311, Year: 2009, Configu-ration: 13 Passengers, Engines: Rolls Royce BR710-A2-20, Avionics: Honeywell Primus 2000 XP, Exterior: Still to be specifiedPrice: US$ 37,995,000

Serial Number: 8110, Year: 2010, Confi-guration: 15 Passengers, Engines: General Electric CF34-3B1, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 4, Program: JSSI Tip To Tail Program, Price: US$ 28,750,000

Serial Number: TBA, Year: 2010, Configura-tion: 9 Passengers, Engines: Honeywell HTF 7000 Turbofans, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 21, Price: on request

CHALLENGER 300 – DECEMBER 2010CHALLENGER 850 – NEW 2010

Serial Number: 5816, Year: 2010, Configura-tion: 12 Passengers, Engines: GE CF34-3B,Avionics: Collins Pro Line 21, APU: HoneywellGTCP36-150(CL), Price: on request

CHALLENGER 605 – FEBRUARY 2010

BEST BUY

GLOBAL 5000 VISION – NEW 2012 GLOBAL 5000 – MARCH 2009

Serial Number: 20078, Year: 2005, Configu-ration: 9 Passengers, Total Time: 1,082 Hrs; 711 Cycles, Engines: Honeywell HTF 7000 Turbofans, Program: APU+Engines on MSP APU: Honeywell 36-15BD, Maintenance: CAMP, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 21

CHALLENGER 300CONSIDERING OFFER

Serial Number: 5318, Year: 1996, Confi-guration: 9 Passengers, Total Time: 6,928 Hrs; 2,952 Cycles, Engines: General Electric CF34-3B, Program: APU+Engines 100% on JSSI · APU: Honeywell GTCP36-100E, Main-tenance: CAMP, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 4 System, JAR OPS Compliant

CHALLENGER 604

ACCEPTING OFFERS

Serial Number: 5166, Year: 1994, Confi-guration: 9 Passengers, Total Time: 7,012 Hrs; 3,199 Cycles, Engines: General Electric CF34-3A1, APU: Honeywell/Garrett GTCP 36-100E, Price: US$ 8,750,000

CHALLENGER 601-3R

BEST BUY

Serial Number: 337, Year: 2008, Configurati-on: 8 Passengers, Total Time: 535.1 Hrs; 301 Cycles, Engines: PW 305 Turbofans, Aircraft: Smart Parts and CIMMS, Price: make offer

BEST PRICE

LEARJET 60XR

Serial Number: 301, Year: 2006, Confi-guration: 7 Passengers, Total Time: 593 Hrs; 358 Cycles, Engines: PW305A Tur-bofans, Program: JSSI Tip To Tail Program, APU: Yes, Maintenance: CAMP, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 4, Availability: Immediately, Price US$ 9,500,000

LEARJET 60SE

JSSI TIP TO TAIL PROGRAM

Serial Number: 244, Year: 2006, Configu-ration: 6 Passengers, Total Time: 389 Hrs; 321 Cycles, Engines: Williams International FJ44-2C, Program: Manufacturer Warranty, Maintenance: Ces com Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21, Price: US$ 5,495,000

CITATION CJ525A

Serial Number: 212, Year: 2003, Configura-tion: 8 Passengers, Total Time: 1,050 Hrs; 782 Cycles, Engines: Rolls Royce AE 3007 CI, Program: Rolls Royce Corporate Care, APU: Garret GTCP 36-150 CX, Maintenance: M89-3 Maintenance Program, Avionics: Honeywell Primus 2000

CITATION X

MUST SELL NEXT

Serial Number: 258095, Year: 1987, Con-figuration: 9 Passengers, Total Time: 7,331 Hrs; 4,125 Cycles, Engines: TFE 731-5R-1H, Program: Engines enrolled on MSP Gold, APU: T62-T40C8D1, Maintenance: MSP Gold, Avionics: Collins 4 Tube EFIS, Price: make offer

RAYTHEON HAWKER 800A

MSP GOLD

Serial Number: 405, Year: 2001, Configura-tion: 8 Passengers, Total Time: 3,189 Hrs; 2,672 Cycles, Engines: P&W PT6A-67B, Avionics: Honeywell EFIS

PC12

Serial Number: RB215, Year: 2007, Confi-guration: 6 Passengers, Total Time: 214 Hrs, Engines: Williams FJ44-2A, Maintenance: Tap Elite, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 21,Price: US$ 45,000/month

BEECHCRAFT PERMIER 1A

LEASE ONLY

Serial Number: 1363, Year: 1999, Confi-guration: 13 Passengers, Total Time: 4,924 Hrs; 2,314 Cycles, Engines: Rolls Royce Tay MK611-8, Program : Rolls Royce Corporate Care, APU: Honeywell GTCP36-500(G), Maintenance: Rolls Royce Corporate Care, Avionics: Honeywell SPZ-8400 6-Tube EFIS, Price: on request

GULFSTREAM GIV-SP

Serial Number: 046, Year: 1999, Configu-ration: 13 Passengers, Total Time: 3,523 Hrs; 1,467 Cycles, Engines: Honeywell TFE 731-60, Program: Engines and APU on MSP, APU: Garret GTCP 36-150, Maintenance: CAMP, Avionics: Honeywell FMZ 2000 System, Price: make offer

FALCON 900EX

REDUCED TO SELL

Serial Number: 236, Year: 2004, Configu-ration: 8 Passengers, Total Time: 850 Hrs; Engines: Allied Signal TFE731-20-AR-BR, Price: US$ 6,950,000

LEARJET 45

UK REGISTERED – 3 AIRCRAFT

SN: 236 LEARJET 60, Year: 2001, Config.: 7+1 Pax, Total Time: 1,726 Hrs; 1,190 Cy-cles, Engines: PW305 Turbofans, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 4, Price: US$ 8,750,000

LEARJET 60

EASA CERTIFIED

SN: 173, Year: 2000, Config.: 7 Pax, Total Time: 3,246 Hrs; 4,125 Cycles, Engines: PW305 Turbofans, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 4, Price: US$ 6,950,000

Serial Number: 116, Year: 2000, Configura-tion: 8+1 Passengers, Total Time: 1,855 Hrs; 1,581 Cycles, Engines: Allied Signal TFE731-20-AR-1B, APU: Honeywell 36-15BD,Maintenance: CAMP, Avionics: Collins Pro Line 21, JAR OPS Compliant, Price: make offer

LEARJET 45

HOT DEAL

Michelin introduced the world’s first radial aircraft tire in 1981. Today, we offer MICHELIN® AIR X® radials in moresizes than all other aircraft tire brands combined, including 14 sizes for business jets.

Compared to bias tires, MICHELIN® AIR X® radials offer:

Measurable Fuel Savings More Landings Per Tread Improved Cut Resistance

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